07-05-2016, 09:17 AM
I analyzed You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. in the same way as I did the Philomela story.
This folio tells the myth of Callisto, as she is raped by Jupiter (Zeus), banished by the goddess Diana, and turned into a bear as a punishment by Jupiter's wife. Finally, Jupiter takes pity on her and puts her and her son in the heavens as the Ursae constellations.
The neutral-downfall-ascension theme is reflected in the layout of the page:
![[Image: order.jpg]](https://herculeaf.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/order.jpg)
My analysis of every image on this folio can be read in You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view..
I have tried to explain what I can, but also indicate the things that are still unclear to me. Like the honest used car salesman I am, I will mention those again separately:
- The VM does never show a half transformed person. In this case, it skips the bear altogether: it goes straight from nymph to constellation/goddess.
- As soon as a male figure becomes a representation of an abstract entity (like a constellation) he is pictured with a female body.
--> These two oddities lead me to believe that the focus is on the end result of these stories. In the chapter of Philomela these were winds, and the birds associated with them. In this story, they are some of the most important constellations.
- The constellations' attributes are highly specialized and do not immediately derive from Greek myth. Ursa minor is holding a red ring, which might be a reference to Polaris, though I don't know how. Ursa major is holding a known object: it can be compared to a sundial, and was used to determine one's position on earth. Ursa major had a similar function in antiquity (and later periods that adhered to the ancients' practice), being the most important constellation in navigation.
This would also imply that the "pangolin" represents the constellation Draco, which arches in between the Ursae and has its belly bent over Little Bear's head, just like is shown here.
For the full analysis of the narrative and the iconography, please read my blogpost, where I discuss everything in detail.
This folio tells the myth of Callisto, as she is raped by Jupiter (Zeus), banished by the goddess Diana, and turned into a bear as a punishment by Jupiter's wife. Finally, Jupiter takes pity on her and puts her and her son in the heavens as the Ursae constellations.
The neutral-downfall-ascension theme is reflected in the layout of the page:
My analysis of every image on this folio can be read in You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view..
I have tried to explain what I can, but also indicate the things that are still unclear to me. Like the honest used car salesman I am, I will mention those again separately:
- The VM does never show a half transformed person. In this case, it skips the bear altogether: it goes straight from nymph to constellation/goddess.
- As soon as a male figure becomes a representation of an abstract entity (like a constellation) he is pictured with a female body.
--> These two oddities lead me to believe that the focus is on the end result of these stories. In the chapter of Philomela these were winds, and the birds associated with them. In this story, they are some of the most important constellations.
- The constellations' attributes are highly specialized and do not immediately derive from Greek myth. Ursa minor is holding a red ring, which might be a reference to Polaris, though I don't know how. Ursa major is holding a known object: it can be compared to a sundial, and was used to determine one's position on earth. Ursa major had a similar function in antiquity (and later periods that adhered to the ancients' practice), being the most important constellation in navigation.
This would also imply that the "pangolin" represents the constellation Draco, which arches in between the Ursae and has its belly bent over Little Bear's head, just like is shown here.
For the full analysis of the narrative and the iconography, please read my blogpost, where I discuss everything in detail.