| Revision as of 17:48, 19 January 2009 edit76.178.148.84 (talk) links← Previous edit | Revision as of 00:00, 23 January 2009 edit undo76.232.18.251 (talk) →Justice in sculptureNext edit → | ||
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| Justitia was only commonly represented as "blind" since about the end of the fifteenth century. The first known representation of blind Justice is ]'s 1543 statue on the '']'' (Fountain of Justice) in ]. | Justitia was only commonly represented as "blind" since about the end of the fifteenth century. The first known representation of blind Justice is ]'s 1543 statue on the '']'' (Fountain of Justice) in ]. | ||
| == | |||
| ==Justice in sculpture== | |||
| <gallery> | |||
| Image:Law place du Palais-Bourbon Paris.jpg|''The Law'', by ] | |||
| Image:JMR-Memphis1.jpg|Shelby County Courthouse, ], ] | |||
| Image:Berner Iustitia.jpg|Lady Justice depicted with sword, scales and blindfold. Sculpture of 1543 by ] on the ] in ], ]. | |||
| Image:Justice statue.jpg|This 19th-century sculpture of the ''Power of Law'' at ], ], lacks the blindfold and scales of Justice, replacing the latter with a book. | |||
| Image:Justitia1.jpg|Sculpture of Lady Justice on the ''Gerechtigkeitsbrunnen'' in ], ]. | |||
| Image:CanadaStatueJustice.JPG|Statue of Justice outside the ]. | |||
| Image:Justitia_mayer.jpg | |||
| </gallery> | |||
| ==References== | ==References== | ||
Revision as of 00:00, 23 January 2009
"Lady Justice" or "Lord Justice" is also the title of judges on the Court of Appeal of England and Wales.
Lady Justice (Iustitia, the Roman Goddess of Justice and sometimes, simply "Justice") is an allegorical personification of the moral force that underlies the legal system.
Depiction
Since the Renaissance, Justitia has frequently been depicted as a bare-breasted woman carrying a sword and scales, and sometimes wearing a blindfold. Her modern iconography, which frequently adorns courthouses and courtrooms, conflates the attributes of several goddesses who embodied Right Rule for Greeks and Romans, blending Roman blindfolded Fortuna (luck) with Hellenistic Greek Tyche (fate), and sword-carrying Nemesis (vengence).
Justitia's attributes parallel those of the Hellenic deities Themis and Dike. Themis was the embodiment of divine order, law, and custom, in her aspect as the personification of the divine rightness of law. However, the mythological connection is not a direct one. A more appropriate comparison is Themis' daughter Dike, who was imagined carrying scales:
- "If some god had been holding level the balance of Dike"
is an image in a surviving fragment of Bacchylides's poetry.
Justitia is most often depicted with a set of weighing scales typically suspended from her left hand, upon which she measures the strengths of a case's support and opposition. She is also often seen carrying a double-edged sword in her right hand, symbolizing the power of Reason and Justice, which may be wielded either for or against any party.
Blindfold
As stated above, Lady Justice is often depicted wearing a blindfold. This is done in order to indicate that justice is (or should be) meted out objectively, without fear or favor, regardless of the identity, power, or weakness: blind justice and blind impartiality. The earliest Roman coins depicted Justitia with the sword on one hand and the scale on the other, but with her eyes uncovered. Justitia was only commonly represented as "blind" since about the end of the fifteenth century. The first known representation of blind Justice is Hans Gieng's 1543 statue on the Gerechtigkeitsbrunnen (Fountain of Justice) in Berne.
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References
- See "The Scales of Justice as Represented in Engravings, Emblems, Reliefs and Sculptures of Early Modern Europe" in G. Lamoine, ed., Images et representations de la justice du XVie au XIXe siecle (Toulouse: University of Toulose-Le Mirail, 1983)" at page 8.
External links
Media related to Iustitia at Wikimedia Commons- DOJ Seal - History and Motto
- Origin of Lady of Justice
- Images of the Goddess of Justice
- Photos of Lady Justice
