The evidence of the Lauber illustrations shows that all creatures with a female torso are either fish or serpent from the waist down. They do not have thighs. Medieval mermaids never have thighs. The VMs illustration has thighs. The VMs illustration cannot be a mermaid. She may look like a mermaid, and she does, but she cannot *be* a mermaid. Melusine of Luxembourg fills the description. The medieval mermaid does not become a creature that has thighs; Melusine changes each week. How could the VMs artist display such a mutable creature like Melusine?
Harley 334 is connected to the VMs by the 'mermaid' investigation and also by the comparison of cosmic structures from Parisian sources including BNF Fr. 565. The "mermaid plus four companions" structure of the Harley diagram is more similar to the VMs than any of the Lauber conglomerations. I see no reason to exclude multiple sources of inspiration. However, the ultimate identification in the VMs is something more than a generic mermaid.
Harley 334 is connected to the VMs by the 'mermaid' investigation and also by the comparison of cosmic structures from Parisian sources including BNF Fr. 565. The "mermaid plus four companions" structure of the Harley diagram is more similar to the VMs than any of the Lauber conglomerations. I see no reason to exclude multiple sources of inspiration. However, the ultimate identification in the VMs is something more than a generic mermaid.