Synopsis

A book author solving a 500 years old riddle hidden in a Renaissance masterpiece isn’t exactly something that occurs very often.

Usually novel authors imagine extraordinary stories, and their characters are those who solve misteries and find hidden treasures. But unlike novels, this is a nonfiction book, and I am perfectly aware that the title is equally a
very  bold statement.
It all started back in 2012, and it took me almost two years to discover the first valuable elements. One of the problems of this book idea is that I cannot reveal in advance exactly what is most interesting ... But 
I have all the essential drawings / demonstrations, and they are based on what Albrecht Dürer himself said: "Geometry is the foundation of all painting". From this point of view, beeing an architect was extremly helpful.
Indeed, the composition of 
Melencolia  has an almost unbelivable level of complexity, on multiple layers. Even the smallest detail is very important, and all the "errors" Dürer made were clearly intentional. The composition itself is like an .exe file, and after the "download" one must use Settings and Tools in order to decipher it in a more detailed manner. Dürer had a precise target and also a serious motivation for what/ why he wanted to hide inside this  extraordinary work of art. 
Melencolia I  has been subject to an impressive number of various interpretations.
What is different about this book?
In my book
Dürer's Melencolia I, Deciphered I don't just interpret the various symbols, this has already been done: my demonstration links them all together, because that's how they make sense. Mathematicians will have a real suprise regarding Dürer's solid ! It's a serious promise.

Outline

1. Albrecht Dürer - an artist between two horizons
2. Melencolia I - a summary of previous interpretations
3. The beggining of the 16th century: context, influences
4. The first steps in deciphering Melencolia I
5. An auxiliary chapter (title not to be disclosed yet)
6. Melencolia I, deciphered
Bibliography 

Audience

At first I thought this would be an academic book mostly for those interested in art, like painters, art critics or architects. I thought that - for somebody who isn't familiar with the subject - reading a title or a reference like
De occulta philosophia, by Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim might seem complicated and uninteresting, or even discouraging. 

Than I realized there is also something else I can write about, something that could be very interesting: my journey, the steps, how I discovered the clues and their meanings . And yes,
it is an interesting journey! From this point of view, there are enough elements to get very close to the structure of a novel, only that the mistery solved is for real... Among many other examples: how a french book, photocopied (at that time, illegaly) before 1989, proved to be so useful almost 30 years later. Or how a trip to Prague, with its Old Town house symbols, helped me see in a different manner Dürer's engraving.  
For an enlarged audience maybe this is one of the most interesting parts of this book: learning how to look at, understand, perceive in a different manner an image, and discover, decipher new meanings and solutions.  Oh, and finding some very old and interesting secrets, of course...

Promotion

First, I'll become much more active on social media - right now this isn't exactly my forte.

A site for the book will be created as soon as possible.

The site will be for updates and, of course, for keeping in contact with all the supporters, but also for discussing (or solving) geometrical constructions, sacred geometry, "did you know " info, comments on symbols etc. 

After the site will be ready, and before launching the book, I intent to start a contest : "What do you think Durer hid in his engraving ?". I can't wait to see the results ! I don't know yet what the first price will be, but I'll figure that out soon and I'll let you know. I'll also reserve a special  mention for the craziest ideea in the contest (but that kind of crazy ideea that makes sense somehow).

Competition

Erwin Panofsky - The Life and Art of Albrecht Dürer

Raymond Klibansky, Erwin Panofsky and Fritz Saxl - Saturn and Melancholy

Karel H.de Haas - Albrecht Dürer's Puzzling Symbolism in His Engraving
Melencolia I, Partly Solved
Karel H. de Haas - Albrecht Dürer's Engraving
Melencolia I: A Symbolic Memorial to the Scientist Johann Muller (Regiomontanus)
Peter-Klaus Schuster - Melencolia I, Dürers Denkbild

All previous authors 
mentioned, interpreted and explained the symbols Albrecht Dürer included in his engraving. 

I demonstrate that
precise constructions, with a clear theme, exist behind them.