Herbert von Karajan - Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen

An eye, a castle, a totem, an altar, ramparts, Stonehenge: the cover design for Herbert von Karajan and the Berliner Philharmoniker’s Ring cycle, completed in 1970, is unmistakable and has acquired iconic status in classical recording history. The typographical elements at its heart are enclosed by three circles, made up of irregularly sized fragments and seemingly held together by magical forces. Do the circles perhaps symbolise the three realms of the gods, humans and Nibelungs?

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