Giacometti's Nose or "ein Lugaus der Phantasie ins Rings"

During a seminar at the Kunstakademie Münster, the subject being Giacometti's sculpture 'The Nose', which was modelled on the features of a dead friend of his as representing the dead as being dead, I learned of a wish of Giacometti's, which was to be hanged just once and still live on. I was very much struck by this story, because something deep inside of me understood and agreed with this desire; and had in fact cherishing it for some time as well...

As does the wonderful Christian Morgenstern in his poems entitled "Galgenlieder"

Or to put it quite differently owing to Michael Pennington in Battle of Wills: "To be no more worth than a piss in the Thames".