Folio 19r shows an image of Aquarius in the form of a naked, beardless man pouring two pitchers out. In keeping with the pictorial appearance of the signs of the zodiac in many books of hours in that period, behind the zodiacal constellation lies a landscape consisting of a river and hills in the distance: this is simply a traditional landscape that has little in common with the one in the miniature on the facing folio. Underneath the medallion, the word “AQVARIVS” can be seen on a phylactery coiling around the quattrocento embellishments.
Despite not showing, as mentioned earlier, the stars that comprise this constellation, this is the image traditionally used for Ganymede the cup bearer, which is why it appears in most zodiac images. The model in the Golf Book does not, however, abide by the classical version showing the gods’ cupbearer naked with a cloak on his shoulder. [...] Aquarius began to appear in the 13th and early 14th century with two pitchers, which became commonplace in the 15th century along with models featuring just one pitcher, in both French and Flemish manuscripts, the latter being related to a greater or lesser extent, particularly in the 16th century, with Simon Bening’s milieu, appearing in his work very often.
Folio 19r shows an image of Aquarius in the form of a naked, beardless man pouring two pitchers out. In keeping with the pictorial appearance of the signs of the zodiac in many books of hours in that period, behind the zodiacal constellation lies a landscape consisting of a river and hills in the distance: this is simply a traditional landscape that has little in common with the one in the miniature on the facing folio. Underneath the medallion, the word “AQVARIVS” can be seen on a phylactery coiling around the quattrocento embellishments.
Despite not showing, as mentioned earlier, the stars that comprise this constellation, this is the image traditionally used for Ganymede the cup bearer, which is why it appears in most zodiac images. The model in the Golf Book does not, however, abide by the classical version showing the gods’ cupbearer naked with a cloak on his shoulder. [...] Aquarius began to appear in the 13th and early 14th century with two pitchers, which became commonplace in the 15th century along with models featuring just one pitcher, in both French and Flemish manuscripts, the latter being related to a greater or lesser extent, particularly in the 16th century, with Simon Bening’s milieu, appearing in his work very often.
Carlos Miranda García-Tejedor
Doctor in History
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