Descartes did not discover a truth hidden from everyone since the dawn of consciousness, but rather invented a new twist, a 'meme' that the times were ripe for and which proliferated like a sudden crystallisation. A subtle veil was added, not taken away. What was it like to be awake in the world before that time? How did things glow and seem to come forward to the encounter? The world Giotto shows au awakens an obscure nostalgia.