The Mystical Unicorn Hunt of Saint Guinefort
For this illumination of Saint Guinefort we look at the dramatic Black Hours of Charles the Bold/Galeazzo Maria Sforza (Cod. 1856) and the Unicorn Hunt Tapestries from the New York Met Cloisters for inspiration in an apocryphal and mystical vision of Saint Guinefort hunting a unicorn.
Saint Mermaid
The Paragon of Woman as Untamed Pagan Past “Her lap-dog became an otter, and for a full three hundred years she roamed the seas.” Dr. Dáithí Ó hÓgáin Myth, Legend…
The Dante Stones of Siena
How an Italian City Honored the Author who Criticized it “Was there ever so vain a people as the Sienese? Even the French can’t match such vanity.” Dante Inferno, 29.…
The Miracle of Saint Guinefort from The Hours of Henry VIII
Intercede for Us, Saint Guinefort, Faithful Hound and Martyr. “The contemporary eye will acknowledge the devotional character of the work, but be drawn to the clean precision of its crafting…
The Apotheosis of Saint Guinefort
Folk Saints, Changelings, and Our Timeless Love of Dogs “…if i have presented (the tale of Saint Guinefort) so unceremoniously at the start of the book it is so that…
Adventures in Ink Making Continued…
Recreating Brazil Wood Ink from Period Recipes “They spawn as it were in March and Aprill; the Geese are formed in May and June, and come to fulnesse of feathers…
How Bosch’s “The Haywain” Shows us the Revelry of Mardi Gras
Hieronymus Bosch needs little introduction in the world of art. However, “The Haywain” gets little attention compared to other works and deserves a closer look.