Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online

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Aged person
(1,098 words)

1. Staircase of Life

In the normative model of the human curriculum vitae, as represented concretely in the image of the life stairs widespread in Germany and Northern Europe from the beginning of the modern period into the late 19th century, the position of old ages was prominently defined [5]. The course of human life was modeled as a curve: its rise (Latin incrementum) represented early childhood, youth, and young adulthood, its crest represented full adulthood, and its decline (decrementum) r…

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Kondratowitz, Hans-Joachim von, “Aged person”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 01 October 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_COM_020426>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20160321



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