Book/Printed Material The Mirror of the World. Image du Monde
About this Item
Title
- The Mirror of the World.
Other Title
- Image du Monde
Summary
- This manuscript, which is dated in a colophon to 1489, is one of the three known 15th-century copies of a rare vernacular cosmography originally composed in verse under the title Image du Monde (The mirror of the world) in the dialect of Lorraine circa 1245-46. The manuscript provides descriptions of the seven liberal arts, along with astronomical theories, especially about the earth, the creatures that inhabit it, and its movements within the universe. Each one of the liberal arts is illustrated with a small miniature in grisaille, and extraordinary geometric astronomical diagrams recur throughout the book. The importance of this work (Walters Art Museum W.199) is both textual and pictorial. Illuminated by followers of Willem (also called Guillaume) Vrelant, who was active in Bruges in 1454-81, the manuscript reveals an affinity of format and content with a 1464 copy of the Image du Monde made in Bruges (London, British Library, Royal 19 A.IX). The text of the work, by Gossouin (or Gauthier) of Metz, originally was commissioned by John, duke of Berry and Auvergne, and appears here in a Gothic littera batarda script. The epilogue refers to "Iehan clerc librarien" in Bruges, who is credited with organizing this edition. The manuscript also includes prayers for physical and spiritual benefits for the readers or auditors. The rubrics are in red and the text is in dark-brown ink with major divisions marked by red or blue initial capitals. The work has one full-page illumination, 11 smaller figural miniatures in grisaille, and 27 polychrome scientific diagrams.
Names
- Vrelant, Guillaume, died 1481 Associated Name.
Created / Published
- Bruges, Belgium : [publisher not identified], 1489-02-20.
Headings
- - Belgium--Flanders--Bruges
- - 1245 to 1246
- - Astronomy, Medieval
- - Codex
- - Cosmology
- - Earth (Planet)
- - Illuminations
- - Miniatures (Illuminations)
- - Science, Medieval
- - Solar system
Notes
- - Title devised, in English, by Library staff.
- - "Walters Ms. W.199"--Note extracted from World Digital Library.
- - Original resource extent: 134 folios : parchment ; 21.3 x 27.9 centimeters.
- - Original resource at: Walters Art Museum.
- - Content in French and Latin.
- - Description based on data extracted from World Digital Library, which may be extracted from partner institutions.
Medium
- 1 online resource.
Source Collection
- Illuminated Manuscripts from Europe
Digital Id
Library of Congress Control Number
- 2021668188
Online Format
- compressed data
- image