Faust, Part One, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1808.

6 - Adam and Eve, Lucas Cranach the Elder, 1528

Jean-Paul Sartre, Les Mouches

The pendulum appears in Umberto Eco's book, Foucault's Pendulum, at the Musée des Arts et Métiers, which houses a great collection of scientific inventions and instruments, including an original version of the pendulum.

Paris street at night

"Mortua est!" is a romantic poem by Mihai Eminescu, written in 1871. It presents the death of a young girl, which leads to mourning as well as to an extensive reflection on the nature of life and death. At first, the poet regards death as a passing to a different realm, littered with starlight and castles. As the contemplation continues though, the frustration with the premature death elicits a different reaction, which suggests dissatisfaction with the futility of life and the inevitability of death, ultimately leading to the rejection of divinity.