Yes, to be clear, there are two similar plants: costmary (Tanacetum balsamita <T.bal>) and tansy (Tanacetum vulgare <T.vul>) It seems that they are clearly differentiated in the era of C-14 relevance.
Costmary is a proposed ID for VMs f46v. There are also other suggestions. That's all reasonable. It's a discussion. And if there is sufficient agreement regarding a specific identification, it clears the hurdle for "certainty". Hooraah!
But there is more. Besides the actual scientific identification, there is the whole historical herbal aspect and finding the common names, which are many given different languages etc.
And in the illustration of f46v, the wingy roots have attracted some attention, with proposed interpretations: two are political and one religious. Are there others?
Consider the list of possibilities under each of these three categories: 1) scientific ID, 2) common name, 3) root interpretation. Select one item from each category such that the three choices are compatible to make an interrelated combination.
As I see it: 1) T.bal; 2) Herbe Sainte-Marie; 3) Saint Michael's wings > at the Assumption of the Virgin. That's a lot more than just a plant identification. Furthermore, the situation regarding Mariology was not only relevant to the C-14 era, but there are other VMs illustrations with hints and suggestions of similar relevance.
Costmary is a proposed ID for VMs f46v. There are also other suggestions. That's all reasonable. It's a discussion. And if there is sufficient agreement regarding a specific identification, it clears the hurdle for "certainty". Hooraah!
But there is more. Besides the actual scientific identification, there is the whole historical herbal aspect and finding the common names, which are many given different languages etc.
And in the illustration of f46v, the wingy roots have attracted some attention, with proposed interpretations: two are political and one religious. Are there others?
Consider the list of possibilities under each of these three categories: 1) scientific ID, 2) common name, 3) root interpretation. Select one item from each category such that the three choices are compatible to make an interrelated combination.
As I see it: 1) T.bal; 2) Herbe Sainte-Marie; 3) Saint Michael's wings > at the Assumption of the Virgin. That's a lot more than just a plant identification. Furthermore, the situation regarding Mariology was not only relevant to the C-14 era, but there are other VMs illustrations with hints and suggestions of similar relevance.