Physiognomy is a study of the human face and its somatic characteristics. It is used to judge the mental ability of people, characters, and emotional attitudes. Lavater published his work in Germany and France. The French edition included additional essays and is widely considered a modern textbook on the subject. This chapter will explore the history of physiognomy and its various theories. Here are some of the most notable examples of physiognomy. Source
Johann Kaspar Lavater, a Pietist reverend, rebuilt physiognomy in the 1775 publication Physiognomische Fragmente. This book brought together major talents of his time to re-build a theory that had been forgotten by the time of his original work. The ancient study of physiognomy assumed a relationship between a person’s physical and psychological characteristics. The new book re-evaluates the relationship between appearance and character.
In Renaissance Italy, Giambattista Della Porta’s work on physiognomy was published in 1586. In Middle English, physiognomy was often written as fisnamy or visnomy. The term “physiognomy” is used in the story of Beryn, a spurious addition to the Canterbury Tales. However, the word is a modern concept that has been in use since the 1500s.
In the early thirteenth century, Michael Scot, a court scholar for Frederick II, wrote the Liber physiognomiae. It was not until the fifteenth century that physiognomy began to be taught in English universities. It was largely suppressed during the Renaissance, when Henry VIII outlawed fisnamy and physnomye. This was done for practical reasons, and to protect the reputation of the University of Cambridge.
In modern times, physiognomy has been a popular topic since the Renaissance. Its origins are largely unknown, but it can be traced to a medieval period in ancient Rome. The concept of a character in a portrait is based on how the features of the face and the body are arranged. The ancients believed that people could predict their character from their appearance. They used physiognomy to understand the social class structure of individuals, as well as the social status of their neighbors.
In the early modern period, physiognomy was considered an art form. It is a form of divination. Its practitioners thought that a man’s face could express his personality. This was the first time a person could describe another person’s character in a human form. The idea of a human being as an expression of emotions was also studied by Lavater. This essentially defined physiognomy as an artform.
Physiognomy had its origins in the ancient world. It was closely linked to astrology and other forms of divination. It figured prominently in the Middle Ages and the ancient Greeks. The ancient Greeks, in particular, analyzed the physical features of people and animals. Some of the most famous physiognoms were the Greeks. They also compared the physical features of humans and their facial expressions with the physical attributes of animals.