Limbourg brothers; Barthélemy d'Eyck
The chariot of the Sun passes from Gemini to Cancer. This is the time for haymaking. On the banks of the Seine, on the lands of the hôtel de Nesle (the Parisian residence of the Duke of Berry), two women rake the mowed hay, piling it up with a pitchfork to form a receding row of small stacks. In the mid-distance, we see men mowing. The men, bare-legged, protect themselves from the heat of the Sun with a knotted kerchief or straw hat. On the island, we see the commanding architecture of the palace of the Cité: behind the narrow gateway, the palace and the royal garden, the hall above the water, three towers (Bonbec, d'Argent and de César), the gallery of St Louis, the gables of the Great Hall, the King's residence, the clock tower, in the background, and Sainte-Chapelle with its rose window.
