--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This was a face such as I had never seen…" description: "\"“This was a face such as I had never seen before, even in the most fanciful of dreams, a face that was, in its way, a work of art. For it was light and..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/390/juliet-marillier-2403_art_this-was-a-face-such-as-i-had-never-seen_1314805.jpg" --- # This was a face such as I had never seen before, even in… ![“This was a face such as I had never seen before, even in the most fanciful of dreams, a face that was, in its way, a work of art. For it was light and dark, night and day, this world and the Otherworld. On the left side, the face of a youngish man, the skin weathered but fair, the eye gray and…” quote by Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/390/juliet-marillier-2403_art_this-was-a-face-such-as-i-had-never-seen_1314805.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/390/juliet-marillier-2403_art_this-was-a-face-such-as-i-had-never-seen_1314805.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/390/juliet-marillier-2403_art_this-was-a-face-such-as-i-had-never-seen_1314805.jpg) > ““This was a face such as I had never seen before, even in the most fanciful of dreams, a face that was, in its way, a work of art. For it was light and dark, night and day, this world and the Otherworld. On the left side, the face of a youngish man, the skin weathered but fair, the eye gray and clear, the mouth well formed if unyielding in character. On all the right side, extending from an undrawn mark down the exact center, an etching of line and curve and feathery pattern, like the mask of some fierce bird of prey. An eagle? A goshawk? No, it was, I thought, a raven, even as far as the circles about the eye and the suggestion of predatory beak around the nostril. The mark of the raven. If I had not been so frightened, I might have laughed at the irony of it. The pattern extended down his neck and under the border of his leather jerkin and the linen shirt he wore beneath it. His head was completely shaven, and the skull, too, was colored the same, half-man, half-wild creature; some great artist of the inks and needle had wrought this over many days, and I imagined the pain must have been considerable.”” [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The description juxtaposes beauty and darkness, showing how art can capture complex, dual nature of identity. **In simple terms:** Art shows both beauty and darkness. Key Takeaway Recognize duality in people. Themes art identity duality beauty darkness creativity Mood mysterious thoughtful Type literary descriptive When to use this quote - character analysis - creative writing - visual arts - psychology Key Concepts Literary description symbolism Questions to Reflect On - What does the raven symbolize? - How does duality affect perception? A Different Perspective Interpretation may be subjective. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Dark night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark-night/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Dreams Face](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams-face-3894131/) [Face Seen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/face-seen-361553/) [Goshawk Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goshawk-thought-4361919/) [Light and dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light-and-dark/) [Raven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/raven/) [Right side](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-side/) [Thought Raven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-raven-4361920/) ## Related quotes > [Within my dreams, I see your face; within my soul, I feel your love; within my heart, you will forever stay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/within-my-dreams-i-see-your-face-within-my-soul-i-feel-your-love/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I know that I love you not because you're the first thing I think of when I wake up, or because you're the last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-know-that-i-love-you-not-because-you-re-the-first-thing-i-think-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Dr. Manning said he'd thought at first it might be sleeping sickness, or even narcolepsy, whatever that was, but - no, Pete was healthy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-kuttner/dr-manning-said-he-d-thought-at-first-it-might-be-sleeping-sickness/) [Henry Kuttner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-kuttner/) > [“And am I there?' 'Always. I'd say, always. You're everywhere, in all the dreams. Sometimes it's your face I dream, but not you. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-richler/and-am-i-there-always-i-d-say-always-you-re-everywhere-in-all-the/) [Emma Richler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-richler/) > [I looked into his eyes, and I realized he was the same man I'd seen in my dreams. His face might be totally different,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/i-looked-into-his-eyes-and-i-realized-he-was-the-same-man-i-d-seen-in/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [If this is a dream, I don't wanna wake up. In my dreams, your face haunts me. It's a beautiful nightmare, Making all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-lucker/if-this-is-a-dream-i-don-t-wanna-wake-up-in-my-dreams-your-face/) [Mitch Lucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-lucker/) > [“He had the smilingest face she'd ever seen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/he-had-the-smilingest-face-she-d-ever-seen/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Tillie studied her mother’s face. The face which had seen thirty-seven years of life. Twenty-one years of marriage. The birth of ten babies. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deeanne-gist/tillie-studied-her-mother-s-face-the-face-which-had-seen-thirty-seven/) [Deeanne Gist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deeanne-gist/) > [“Yours was the most beautiful face I'd ever seen because it was the only face I'd ever truly seen. You were the person I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudia-gray/yours-was-the-most-beautiful-face-i-d-ever-seen-because-it-was-the/) [Claudia Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudia-gray/) > [“To see a face behind a name, if that name was wreathed in tales of heroism, was a clean kind of curiosity. But the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-erikson/to-see-a-face-behind-a-name-if-that-name-was-wreathed-in-tales-of/) [Steven Erikson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-erikson/) > [Knavery's plain face is never seen till used.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/knavery-s-plain-face-is-never-seen-till-used/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I took one glance at her in that hospital bed under the dull light and recognised the look on her face, which I'd seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/i-took-one-glance-at-her-in-that-hospital-bed-under-the-dull-light/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“The dark-haired girl had the face of someone who had seen a lot, and wouldn’t mind punching most of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-rundell/the-dark-haired-girl-had-the-face-of-someone-who-had-seen-a-lot-and/) [Katherine Rundell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-rundell/) > [Expression Of The Face Could Be Seen By Everyone. But The Depression Of Heart Could Be Understood Only By The Best One..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pacifiersucker/expression-of-the-face-could-be-seen-by-everyone-but-the-depression/) [Pacifiersucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pacifiersucker/) > [The problem with Raven is that she's so smart, so sometimes it's hard for her to be hopeful or idealistic, because she's so realistic.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-morgan/the-problem-with-raven-is-that-she-s-so-smart-so-sometimes-it-s-hard/) [Lindsey Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-morgan/) ## More by Juliet Marillier > [“What came next is very hard to tell. Indeed, I have told it but once before, when I needed to, and I will tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/what-came-next-is-very-hard-to-tell-indeed-i-have-told-it-but-once/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [The greatest tales, well told, awaken the fears and longings of the listeners. Each man hears a different story. Each is touched by it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/the-greatest-tales-well-told-awaken-the-fears-and-longings-of-the/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [After a while, footsteps sounded on the flagstones outside and there was a gentle tap at the door. Of course, one of them would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/after-a-while-footsteps-sounded-on-the-flagstones-outside-and-there/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [Eat of my deep earth, drink of my living streams, for I am your Mother. Your heart is my wild drum, your breath my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/eat-of-my-deep-earth-drink-of-my-living-streams-for-i-am-your-mother/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [I wish- I wish I could dry these tears, I wish I could make this better for you. But I don't know how.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/i-wish-i-wish-i-could-dry-these-tears-i-wish-i-could-make-this-better/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [“You speak like a jealous lover." -Fola to Broichan”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/you-speak-like-a-jealous-lover-fola-to-broichan/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [“I learned that in the end, only I was responsible for my actions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/i-learned-that-in-the-end-only-i-was-responsible-for-my-actions/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [“That's lovely singing, Saraid," Eile said. "Is Sorry asleep now?" Saraid shook her head solemnly. "Sorry's sad. Crying." She held the doll against her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/that-s-lovely-singing-saraid-eile-said-is-sorry-asleep-now-saraid/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [“I cannot expiate my sin, yet I am compelled to try. My mind will not let me rest. There must be something I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/i-cannot-expiate-my-sin-yet-i-am-compelled-to-try-my-mind-will-not/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [“Don't you long for something different to happen, something so exciting and new it carries you along with it like a great tide, something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/don-t-you-long-for-something-different-to-happen-something-so/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [“ So you do believe in... true love? she whispered. I took a deep breath, I think I have to, I said, blinking back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/so-you-do-believe-in-true-love-she-whispered-i-took-a-deep-breath-i/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [Nothing comes without a price.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/nothing-comes-without-a-price/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [“There's a light shining in him, moving him forward: the light of freedom. That's what draws all of us to follow, to take risks,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/there-s-a-light-shining-in-him-moving-him-forward-the-light-of/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [“Amazing, I thought nobody could tell that man what to do." -Foalan to Bridei Talking about Broichan”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/amazing-i-thought-nobody-could-tell-that-man-what-to-do-foalan-to/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [“We’re all trapped in a net of consequences, condemned to paths outside our control. It’s the way of things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/we-re-all-trapped-in-a-net-of-consequences-condemned-to-paths-outside/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) [Explore all 163 Juliet Marillier quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“This was a face such as I had never seen before, even in the most fanciful of dreams, a face that was, in its way, a work of art. For it was light and dark, night and day, this world and the Otherworld. On the left side, the face of a youngish man, the skin weathered but fair, the eye gray and clear, the mouth well formed if unyielding in character. On all the right side, extending from an undrawn mark down the exact center, an etching of line and curve and feathery pattern, like the mask of some fierce bird of prey. An eagle? A goshawk? No, it was, I thought, a raven, even as far as the circles about the eye and the suggestion of predatory beak around the nostril. The mark of the raven. If I had not been so frightened, I might have laughed at the irony of it. The pattern extended down his neck and under the border of his leather jerkin and the linen shirt he wore beneath it. 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