(355) PMM M.198

Tags

15th century, book of hours, border, dextral, France, humanised, hybrid, PMM, sinistral, stylised

A Book of Hours, originating from Amiens, France, ca. 1480, is now in the collection of the Pierpont Morgan Museum [1].

The first snail is encountered on folio 020r, of which the descriptive text is “Virgin Mary and Christ Child — Virgin Mary, nimbed, seated on canopied throne with carved statues, holds in her lap Christ Child, with crossed nimbus, extending both hands toward donor, with hat hanging down his back and purse at waist, kneeling with joined hands raised. Scene in room with landscape with distant city visible through arched doorway at right.
Initial O inhabited by bird, possibly mourning dove or pigeon.
Margins with floreate and vinescroll ornament, inhabited by snail, hawk, and fantastic animal”.

The snail is a dextral specimen, not accurately drawn after nature with the aperture crenate; the animal’s head is pointed, with an eye-spot and a short, curled tentacles (?). Overall it has a glum look.

The next one is on folio 033v, described as “Virgin Mary: Visitation — Virgin Mary, with rayed nimbus, is embraced by Elizabeth, with rayed nimbus, wearing wimpled veil. Both stand on path before wattle wall, behind which stands Zacharias (?), with cane or crutch in left hand. In background are castle-like houses and lake, with distant mountain.
Initial D inhabited by half-figure of woman, wearing turban-like headdress, holding scroll with illegible (damaged) inscription.
Margins with floreate and vinescroll ornament in diagonal bands, inhabited by moth; monkey (?), wearing crown (?), holding spear (?) and seated on snail shell; and bird”.

The shell is dextral and seen from the top side. On closer examination the monkey “spear (?)” looks to me like a bishop’s staff.

Folio 103r is described as follows “Adrian of Nicomedia: Scene, Martyrdom — Adrian, nimbed, wearing short loin cloth, lays across anvil, with his left arm severed. His hand lays on the floor. Flanking Adrian are two tormentors, including one wearing helmet, both with swords sheathed at their waists and holding hammers raised in both hands. Emperor Maximianus I, crowned, wearing ermine-collared mantle, holding scepter in right hand, witnesses martyrdom from behind low wall.
Margins with floreate and vinescroll ornament, inhabited by bird and snail”.

The snail is shown here is ‘2D squashed’ with the shell seen from the top (dextrally coiled) and the animal from the side (undulating and humanised).

Finally, folio 115r has the following description “Two scenes in continuous narrative:
1) Barbara of Nicomedia: Scene, Martyrdom — Dioscorus (?), crowned, wearing ermine-trimmed garment, stands with sword raised in right hand behind Barbara, nimbed, kneeling with joined hands raised.
2) Dioscorus of Nicomedia: Scene, Death (?) — Dioscorus (?), wearing ermine-trimmed garment, falls to ground flanked by two other men, all struck with stones falling from sky. Behind Dioscorus are devils (?).
Margins with floreate and vinescroll ornament in lozenge patterns, inhabited by bird and hybrid man, with human head emerging from snail shell”.

The malacomorph hybrid emerges from a sinistral shell and looks to me like a bearded devil.

This manuscript seems very apt for Chistmas 🙂

Note:
[1] PMM, inv. Ms. M.198, 126 ff. http://corsair.morganlibrary.org/msdescr/BBM0198.htm.

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(346) PMM M.88

Tags

'knight and snail', 14th century, dextral, France, humanised, marginalia, PMM, psalter, sinistral, stylised

This manuscript psalter-hours for the use of Metz (Hours of the Virgin, Office of the Dead) was written and illuminated in France, probably Metz, between 1370 and 1380. It is now in the Piermont Morgan Library [1].

Folio 060v is described as follows “Psalm 052 (Vulg., 051): David, crowned, stands with hands raised before devil. Scene on gold background within foliate initial Q.
Left margin: Bird. Lower margin (bas-de-page): Man wearing fool’s cap and holding sword and shield defends himself against snail, sitting on hill in which rabbit looks out from burrow”.

This is another variant of the ‘knight v. snail’ theme.

Folio 177v is described as “Christ: Deposition — Christ, crossed nimbus, in loin cloth, is lowered from Cross. Virgin Mary, nimbed, veiled, holds right arm; Joseph of Arimathea supports torso with draped hands; Nicodemus removes nail from feet. Scene on green background decorated in gold within foliate initial A. Left margin: Bird. Right margin: Bird, possibly crane. Lower margin (bas-de-page): Snail pulls cart containing barrel.”

What else than wine could be in the barrel? And if so, would the snail then be a Helix pomatia (the ‘vineyard snail)? Mysterious…

Note:
[1] PMM, inv. Ms. M.88, 214 ff. [corsair.themorgan.org, search ‘snail’ #316, 317]

(320) RMA RP-P-1964-2365

Tags

16th century, dextral, engraving, Etienne Delaune, France, humanised, multiple, RMA, sinistral, stylised

In the collection of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, this engraving by Etienne Delaune (1518–1583) is from a series of six on sciences represented by a woman [1]. In this case astronomy is illustrated with various measuring devices, set into a frame with mostly symmetrical figures (inter alia two snails).

The snails are stylised, with two tentacles, an eye-spot and “dripping tails”. One shell is dextral, the other sinistral; both have wings but also a flower protruding from these. Is this what may be called ‘grotesque’?

Note:
[1] RMA, inv. RP-P-1964-2365. http://hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.413590.

(316) PMM Ms. G.1

Tags

15th century, book of hours, border, dextral, France, Helix-like, humanised, multiple, PMM

In the Pierpont Morgan Library, this Book of Hours in Latin and French originates from the Loire region in France about 1475 [1].

On folio 014r a miniature of the Evangelist Matthew on a bench writing on a desk is surrounded by a border with flowers, a snail and some birds. The snail is dextral with a slightly thickened aperture lip (Helix-like) and its tentacles shown.

Folio 061v shows the Annunciation of Mary by two sheperds, with margins decorated with border of floreate ornaments with butterflies, a bird and a snail. The snail is seen in ‘2D squashed mode’, showing a dextral specimen with a slightly ribbed shell.

The Coronation of Virgin Mary is shown on folio 091v in a miniature, with borders of floreate ornamentation with a woman and two snails. In the left border the snail is seen from the top, in the lower border the animal is shown from the left side. Both specimens are dextral.

Folio 127r illustrates in a miniature the Crucification of Christ. The borders are populated with a butterfly, bird, snail, fly and a grotestque. The snail is a dextral specimen, with two tentacles shown.

Pentecost is shown in the miniature on folio 139r, with borders illustrating flowers, butterflies, a snail and a hybrid. The snail has a dextral shell; the head of the animal is drawn with two tentacles and a humanised face, the whole looking like the head of a sheep.

Finally, folio 330r shows in the miniature the Deposition of Christ; the borders are decorated with floreate ornaments, two birds, a snail and a woman riding on a hybrid bird. The snail is seen from the left side with a more or less stylised shell (dextral) and the animal with two tentacles.

All shells are brownish and may have been modeled after a Helix species.

Note:
[1] PMM, inv. Ms. G.1, ff. 224 + 134. http://corsair.morganlibrary.org/msdescr/BBG0001a.pdf.

(310) BML BEP 1853.0214.2

Tags

'knight and snail', 13th century, BML, England, humanised, sinistral, stylised

A carved draught’s-piece or table-man, made from boxwood, with depiction of a soldier fighting a helmeted snail on a wall is in the collection of the British Museum, London (Dept. Britain, Europe and Prehistory), and thought to be of 13th century English origin. The curator’s comments reads as follows “Circular carved pieces such as this one were not necessarily used for Draughts alone – Backgammon is another possibility. There are many examples of tablemen in ivory and bone, with religious, secular and mythical subject-matter” [1].

The scene seems to me a variation on the ‘knight v. snail’ theme (cf. this post where the figure from Pinon was reproduced). The shell is stylised and sinistral, the animal has two tentacles and is humanised.

Note:
[1] BML, inv. BEP 1853.0214.2.

(307) BLO Ms. Rawl. liturg. e.36

Tags

16th century, BLO, dextral, France, humanised, miniature

This Book of Hourse, use of Rome is dated the first quarter of 16th century and is in the Bodleian Library, Oxford [1].

Folio 020r has a small miniature in the lower margin about the Annunciation. The Virgin sits under a canopy with an open book before her, Angel Gabriel in front of her. Panel border with scroll (with first words of Annunciation: ‘Ave Maria Gratia’). Ribbon initial ‘D(omine)’ with a bird and snail.

The snail is dextral specimen, the shell regularly coiled, and the animal streching with two tentacles plus and eye-spot. It’s about to become victim of the bird.

Note:
[1] BLO, inv. Ms. Rawl. liturg. e.36, (116+ ff.).

(306) PMM B.19

Tags

15th century, humanised, Italy, marginalia, PMM, stylised

An Italian receipe collection was trusted to vellum in the late 15th century in Naples [1]. One of the receipes was for cooking snails, and perhaps to ascertain that the scribe was not misunderstood, a sketch of a snail was added.

The snail has an eye-spot and two bat-like ears (meant to be the larger tentacles); the shell is just a blob.

Note:
[1] PMM, inv. Ms. B.19, 90 ff. [corsair.themorgan.org, search ‘snail, #18]

 

(272) BLO Ms. Lyell empt. 4

Tags

'knight and snail', 14th century, BLO, dextral, England, humanised, stylised

This English manuscript in the Bodleian Library, Oxford is known as “”, and is dated as early 14th century [1].

On folio 008r Psalm 1 starts with a historiated initial ‘B(eatus)’ with David playing the harp. Bar border with foliated decoration, ivy, and birds. In the lower margin a hybrid grotesque threatens a snail with a sword.

The snail is stylised, with a dextral, segmented shell. The animal is without tail, with five (!) tentacles; an eye-spot is suggested by a darker blob on the head.

Note:
[1] BLO, inv. Ms. Lyell empt. 4. http://to.ly/G58J.

(270) BML PD 1934.0608.5

Tags

18th century, BML, England, engraving, humanised, sinistral, stylised, William Kent

This is an earlier print –from 1727– illustrating the same fable of yesterday’s post. The print was made by Pierre Fourdrinier after William Kent. The building in the background is Burlington’s casina at Chiswick [1].

Part of the text is printed on the verso side of the engraving.

Note that the snail is here sinistral, illustrated in ‘medieval style’ with ‘sheepy’ shell and an enlarged aperture from which the humanised animal emerges, with two tentacles only.

Note:
[1] BML, inv. PD 1934.0608.5. http://to.ly/FHxJ. Also a biography of printmaker William Kent can be found here.

(265) BLL Ms. Royal 2 B.XV

Tags

16th century, BLL, book of hours, dextral, England, humanised, hybrid, stylised

“This is a remarkably large and lavishly illuminated Book of Hours, combining French and English styles. The first leaf contains a list of obits members of the royal family and of the 4th, 5th, and 6th Earls of Ormond and their wives, so it was probably made for Anne Boleyn’s grandfather, Thomas Butler (1426-1515), 7th Earl of Ormond, or a member of his family. It was given in the early 16th century to a chapel at ‘Suthwyke’, probably Southwick in Hampshire. The start of the Hours of the Virgin, facing a full-page miniature, has an initial ‘D’ and border of typical English foliage, inhabited by a snail and hybrid creatures” [1].

The snail is found on f. 016r, has a dextral shell with an exceedingly large aperture. The animal looks like a snail at first glance with a humanised face, but a closer look makes me think it is a hybrid: two legs beneath and a rounded ear, giving the impression of a rat-like creature. No doubt imaginary…, but fitting in the others on the page.

Note:
[1] BLL, inv. Royal 2 B.xv, ff. http://to.ly/Ftqq.