Evil tongues in Vienna. Dragons, unicorns, poison in food
26 September 2024
Lecture by Christoph Becker, Director emeritus of the Kunsthaus Zürich
(in German language)

Three similar, strange Kunstkammer objects are preserved and exhibited in Vienna and Dresden - so-called Natternzungen credenzas, which were created at the end of the Middle Ages. At the beginning of the Enlightenment, their original purpose and meaning changed fundamentally. Like the objects from the legendary unicorn, they are symptomatic of the development of natural and art science and the emergence of the museum, or in short: it is about lies, truth and knowledge...