J. Paul Getty Museum, MS. Ludwig XV 7, fol. 70r, 1405 | MARGOT

Detailed manuscript information (based on Roman de la Rose: digital surrogates of medieval manuscripts and Anton von Euw and Joachim M. Plotzek, Die Handschriften der Sammlung Ludwig, Cologne: Schnügen-Museum, 1979-85, vol. 4:228-239.)

Parchment, measure: 372x258mm, 138 folios, two columns, 44 lines.

Scene depicted

False Seeming addresses the God of Love and his army.

Miniature description

Size:

372x258mm
Column miniature
Height: 14 lines

Material and colors:

Parchment
Gold leaf, blue, white, brown, black, grey

Initial:

A foliate initial "S" over a gold leaf background with red, white and black foliate extenders which spring upwards and probably downwards also.

Rubric:

Above miniature: “faussemblant”

Frame:

Simple gold leaf exterior frame. Inner frame in blue and white on the right and bottom of the frame, red and white on the left and top of the frame.

Background:

Background is a blue sky and white clouds with brown ground, done in rudimentary atmospheric perspective.

Place of production of miniature:

France

Date of production of miniature:

1405

Similarities with other images of the corpus:

The allegories' position is similar in the following manuscripts : PML. Ms. 132, fol. 78r; BNF. Ms. fr. 380, fol. 73r; Fitzwilliam Museum. Ms.169, fol. 48v.

Other Allegories: Fitzwilliam Museum. Ms.169, fol. 48v.

Secondary Sources:

Euw, Anton von and Joachim M. Plotzek. Die Handschriften der Sammlung Ludwig. Cologne: Schnügen-Museum, 1979-85, vol. 4: 228-239.

Detailed description

Allegories:

The God of Love and his army are on the right.

False Seeming is on the left.

Clothing and other features:

*Semi-grisaille

1. False Seeming

Black monk’s habit with a cowl
White alb with tight fitting sleeves
Gold leaf girdle
Tonsured head (with blonde hair)

2.God of Love

White and grey houppeland with gold flower pattern
Black girdle
White wings
Gold necklace
Blonde hair

3. God of Love's army

White robes
The figure on the right wears a robe with long voluminous sleeves and gold trim around the neckline. He also wears a chaperon. The figure in the middleground wears a hat. The crown of the hat is surrounded by an upright fold of material fixed in front; the brim, turned up at the back, comes to a point at the front.

Gestures:

False Seeming is addressing the God of Love and his army. The finger of his right hand is raised in a gesture of speech. His left hand is also raised, palm facing upwards. The God of Love has his left hand raised and his right hand slightly extended. The members of the God of Love's army are looking on.

Ex-libris

On the recto of the first flyleaf: The owner is probably Jean du Rueil (1474-1537) according to an erased entry, read as J Duryeil.
On the verso of the same leaf: A medieval entry reading (La) mauie and F. Lorris (?).
Louis-Jean Gaignat (1697-1768).
Charles-Adrien Picard. Philippe l'Ain, Marseille (glued on the recto of the 2nd overleaf, the text from the auction catalog of his manuscripts).
Possible owners of the manuscript: Claude-Joseph Clos (1812); Probably Count MacCarthy-Reagh (1744-1811); William Beckford, Fonthill (1759-1844), bought Oct. 1814 from Auguste Chardin, Paris; in Beckford's inventory of the year 1844, it carried the no. 36; Alexander, 10th Duke of Hamilton (1767-1852); he inherited the manuscripts of his father-in-law, William Beckford (on the recto of the 1st overleaf in pencil HB no. 427); Berlin, Graphiksammlung of the Königlich-Preußisches Museum. Albert de Naurois (his ex libris with the motto "Tantum prodest quantum prosunt" in the inner front cover); Edouard Rahir, Paris (1862-1924); Adolphe Bordes; Jacques Guérin.

The manuscript belongs to the most beautiful of the approximately three hundred extant Roman de la Rose manuscripts. Furthermore it is, with its 101 column-wide miniature paintings, one of the most richly decorated copies of the text that was so popular from its emergence into the 16th century.