,transcriber's ,note3 ,italic text is   
enclosed in underscores4 ,boldface  text
 is enclosed in equals signs4           
,small-caps text is shown in  all-caps4 
,illustration3          ,lorenzo da     
,sanseverino            ,photo          
,hanfstngl    ,,the ,,virgin ,,in ,a    
,,strawberry-,,decorated ,,mantle       
,below are the ,gourd and ,apple1       
symbols of ,resurrection and ,death     
7,national ,gallery7      ,frontispiece 
,,the                                   
,,floral ,,symbolism ,,of               
,,the ,,great ,,masters                 
,,by                                    
,,elizabeth ,,haig                      
,illustration                           
,,london3                  ,,kegan      
,,paul1 ,,trench1 ,,tr,,bner  ,,co41    
,,ltd4                  ,,broadway      
,,house1 #fh-gd ,,carter ,,lane1 ,e4,c4 
#aiac    ,illustration3 ,the ,divine    
,heart 7#aith ,century--,german7        
,,preface      ,this little book has    
been written for the pleasure of those  

amateurs  who are more interested in the
 idea which inspires a picture than  in 
the picture's workmanship4 ,naturally1  
the more accomplished the  artist1 the  
more clearly and attractively is he able
 to set forth his  meaning2 but with art
 criticism this book has nothing to do1 
and the  attributions are1 for the most 
part1 simply those of the official      
catalogues of the respective galleries4 
,to explain completely even so small a  
branch of ,christian symbolism as  that 
of flowers1 an exhaustive knowledge is  
required of the development  of         
,christian theology1 and of the varying 
force with which different  doctrines   
appealed at different times to the      
public mind4 ,but still1  these notes   
may be of some interest to those who    
care to trace in the  work sanctioned by
 the ,church and reverenced by the      
people the history  of ,western         
idealism1 and who are sometimes puzzled 
by the conventions  employed by the     
,masters to illustrate the ,divine      

,mysteries4          ,,contents         
,,chap4                                 
,,page        ,i4  ,,emblems ,,and      
,,symbols                               
#i         ,,ii4  ,,the ,,flower        
,,symbolists                            
#bc        ,,iii4  ,,the ,,lily         
#da         ,,iv4  ,,the ,,iris         
#fb          ,v4  ,,the ,,rose          
#ga         ,,vi4  ,,the ,,carnation    
#hc        ,,vii4  ,,garlands ,,of      
,,roses                                 
#hh       ,,viii4  ,,the ,,columbine    
#ajd         ,,ix4  ,,the ,,olive       
#aab          ,x4  ,,thorns             
#abf         ,,xi4  ,,the ,,palm        
#acd        ,,xii4  ,,the ,,acanthus    
#adf       ,,xiii4  ,,the               
,,fleur-,,de-,,lys                      
#adh        ,,xiv4  ,,the ,,lily ,,of   
,,the ,,annunciation                    
#afb         ,,xv4  ,,the ,,lily ,,of   
,,the ,,angel ,,gabriel                 
#agg        ,,xvi4  ,,the ,,flowers ,,of
 ,,the ,,divinity                       

#aia       ,,xvii4  ,,the ,,flowers ,,of
 ,,the ,,virgin                         
#aig      ,,xviii4  ,,the ,,lily ,,of   
,,the ,,saints                          
#bai        ,,xix4  ,,the ,,vine        
#bce         ,,xx4  ,,the ,,fruit ,,of  
,,the ,,tree ,,of ,,knowledge           
#bdj        ,,xxi4  ,,the ,,gourd       
#beg       ,,xxii4  ,,the ,,pomegranate 
#bfa      ,,xxiii4  ,,the ,,strawberry  
#bfh       ,,xxiv4  ,,fruit ,,in        
,,garlands                              
#bgb              ,,paradise4 ,,giovanni
 ,,di ,,paolo                           
#bgg              ,,the ,,queen ,,of    
,,heaven4 ,h4 ,,van ,,eyck              
#bgi              ,,the ,,adoration ,,of
 ,,the ,,shepherds4 ,h4 ,,van ,,der     
,,goes            #bha              ,,la
 ,,purissima4 ,,murillo                 
#bhc              ,,the ,,girlhood ,,of 
,,mary1 ,,virgin4 ,d4 ,g4 ,,rossetti    
#bhe              ,,list ,,of           
,,authorities                           
#bhg              ,,index ,,of ,,artists

                                        
#bhi              ,,index ,,of ,,flowers
                                        
#bia          ,,list ,,of               
,,illustrations         ,,plate         
,,page        ,i4 ,,the ,,virgin ,,in ,a
 ,,strawberry-,,decorated ,,mantle      
7,lorenzo              da ,san          
,severino7                              
,frontispiece         ,,ii4 ,,the       
,,badge ,,of ,,the ,,order ,,of ,,the   
,,lily ,,of ,,navarre                #da
        ,,iii4 ,,the ,,flowers ,,of     
,,heaven 7,mosaic of the #acth ,century7
         #da         ,,iv4 ,,the        
#8,,enclosed ,,garden' ,,of ,,the       
,,virgin 7,stefano da ,zevio7    #ajj   
,v4 ,,gabriel1 ,,crowned ,,with ,,olive1
 ,,brings ,,the ,,message ,,of          
,,reconciliation 7,martin ,schngauer7   
#abc         ,,vi4 ,,the ,,crown ,,of   
,,thorns 7,zurburan7                    
#abh        ,,vii4 ,,the ,,acanthus ,,of
 ,,paradise 7,mosaic of the #acth       
,century7     #adf       ,,viii4 ,,the  

,,rose ,,of ,,divine ,,love ,,rising    
,,from ,a ,,precious ,,vessel           
7,pinturicchio7                         
#afi         ,,ix4 ,,the ,,royal ,,lily 
,,springing ,,from ,a ,,humble ,,vase   
7,pesello7     #afi          ,x4 ,,the  
,,columbine ,,of ,,the ,,seven ,,gifts  
7,jrg ,breu7              #ahh          
,,xi4 ,,saint ,,barbara ,,with ,,the    
,,royal ,,lily 7,the ,master of         
,flmalle7                               
#ahh        ,,xii4 ,,the ,,fruit ,,of   
,,damnation ,,exchanged ,,for ,,the     
,,fruit ,,of              ,,redemption  
7,hugo van der ,goes7                   
#bde       ,,xiii4 ,,the ,,fruit ,,of   
,,heaven ,,relinquished ,,for ,,the     
,,apple ,,of              ,,eden        
7,memling7                              
#bde        ,,xiv4 ,,adam ,,and ,,eve   
,,delivered ,,from ,,hell 7,martin      
,schngauer7      #bdh         ,,xv4     
,,the ,,child ,,with ,,the ,,pomegranate
 ,,surrounded ,,by ,,angels             
,,with ,,lilies ,,and ,,rose-,,garlands 

7,botticelli7             #bfb          
,,xvi4 ,,paradise 7,giovanni di ,paolo7 
#bgh       ,,xvii4 ,,the ,,queen ,,of   
,,heaven 7,hubert van ,eyck7            
#bhj      ,,xviii4 ,,the ,,adoration    
,,of ,,the ,,shepherds 7,hugo van der   
,goes7        #bhb        ,,xix4 ,,the  
,,immaculate ,,conception 7,murillo7    
#bhd         ,,xx4 ,,the ,,girlhood ,,of
 ,,mary1 ,,virgin 7,dante ,gabriel      
,rossetti7     #bhf          ,,the      
,,floral ,,symbolism ,,of ,,the ,,great 
,,masters          ,i    ,,emblems ,,and
 ,,symbols#a      ,since the earliest   
days of ,christianity the ,church has   
made use of  emblems4 ,the ,early       
,church used them partly protectively to
 conceal  their faith from the pagans1  
and partly because it lacked artists    
capable of worthily depicting the       
,godhead in human form4 ,even when the  
days of persecution had passed1 the     
,church1 restrained by reverential      
tradition1 by poverty perhaps1 and      
perhaps by the ,eastern fear of the     

#8graven image1' continued to represent 
,christ as the ,true ,vine and the      
,apostles as sheep or as doves4    ,but 
at the beginning of the fourth century  
the ,emperor ,constantine  established  
,christianity as the religion of the    
state4 ,new1 and often  magnificent1    
churches were built in each town and the
 ,emperor placed in  the hands of the   
ecclesiastics a large portion of the    
royal revenues4    ,in these grand new  
basilicas the simple decoration of the  
,catacombs  and tiny ancient chapels was
 not sufficient4 ,the ample walls       
offered  a splendid field for the       
mosaicist and ,byzantine taste demanded 
elaborate pictorial effects4            
,representations of the ,redeemer       
appeared  surrounded by the ,apostles1  
the prophets and the four-and-twenty    
elders of ,revelation4 ,saints and      
martyrs were introduced1 and later  we  
find imperial personages1 ,justinian    
surrounded by his guards and  ,theodora 
followed by the ladies of her court4 ,it

 became necessary to  distinguish the   
figures one from another and therefore  
symbolism was  largely introduced4 ,the 
,deity was placed within the mandorla1  
symbol  of perfect blessedness4 ,the    
prophets were awarded broken wheels to  
denote their imperfect revelation1 and  
the apostles books1 to signify  their   
fuller knowledge4 ,haloes were carefully
 differentiated4 ,virgin  saints carried
 palms or laurel crowns1 and martyrs had
 the instruments  of their martyrdom    
placed beside them4 ,some figures       
carried scrolls  on which were inscribed
 texts which gave the clue to their     
identity1  others simply had their names
 written above their heads1 but both    
these  latter devices were useless to   
the ignorant4    ,at the ,renaissance1  
when art had a fuller life and wider    
aims1 it  was not sufficient to thus    
merely label the persons represented4   
,the  traditions of ,byzantine art once 
broken1 the painter was free to set     
upon the panel all the beauty that his  

mind could conceive and that his  hand  
could execute4 ,he had no longer to     
paint a ,christ or a ,madonna  correct  
to a formula1 but none the less he was  
bound to depict figures  which should be
 instantly recognizable as ,god         
incarnate and the meek  ,mother of      
,christ4 ,so from his freedom sprang the
 problem which has  occupied the        
religious painter ever since1 the       
painting of a soul's  quality1 the      
making visible to the world of the      
beauty of holiness4    ,during the great
 century of art1 achievement came4      
,raphael1 ,leonardo1  ,michael ,angelo1 
,perugino required and used no symbol to
 express the  majesty of ,christ or the 
purity of the ,virgin ,mother4 ,they had
 that  power to make visible the        
intangible which1 in art1 is genius4    
,but  among the earlier artists of the  
thirteenth and fourteenth centuries1  he
 who was unable to show by the          
announcing angel's attitude and  mien   
that his message was one of peace and   

goodwill1 placed a branch  of olive in  
his hand1 and he who despaired of       
adequately depicting  the immaculate    
purity of the ,virgin1 emphasized his   
point by setting  a pot of spotless     
lilies by her side4 ,so was the         
intention of the  least-accomplished of 
artists made clear1 even to the         
unlettered4    ,after the first         
effervescence of the ,renaissance had   
died down1 the  laws of sacred art      
became once more fixed1 though never    
again 7except  in ,spain beneath the    
,inquisition7 with the strictness of the
 ,byzantine  school4 ,art as a teacher  
of religion required to be as           
conservative  as the ,catholic ,church  
with which it was allied1 and the       
symbolism of  the fourteenth century has
 remained with few additions or         
modifications  to our own day4 ,when    
devotional pictures multiplied1 emblems 
passed  into what may be termed the     
heraldry of the ,church4 ,though also   
used in  decoration1 their primary use  

upon altar vessels and ,church furniture
  was to distinguish the object as      
sacred1 or as the property of the       
,church1 in the same way as the royal   
arms or a private crest indicated  the  
ownership of secular things4 ,they      
appeared on the banners used in         
processions of the ,church and on the   
badges and insignia of religious        
orders1 but were very seldom used in    
pictorial art4 ,indeed1 it is in  the   
early ,flemish school alone that        
pictures similar to the van ,eycks'     
#8,adoration of the ,mystic ,lamb'#b or 
to their #8,fountain of ,life'#c are    
found1 where angels1 prophets1 saints   
and patriarchs bow down before  the     
emblem1 not the figure1 of the ,saviour4
    ,during the first twelve centuries  
of ,christianity the emblems and        
symbols of the ,church were drawn from  
many sources2 those that were           
introduced at the ,renaissance were     
fruits and flowers4 ,the ,christ-,child 
holds the apple1 symbol of the ,fall1 or

 a pomegranate showing the  seeds1      
symbol of the ,church4 ,the lily        
typifies the spotless purity  of the    
,virgin4 ,saint ,dorothea is crowned    
with roses2 ,saint ,joseph  holds the   
flowering rod4 ,there were1 of course1  
other symbols used4  ,allegorical       
figures held the sword of justice or the
 scales of  judgment2 the mandorla1 the 
halo1 the orb of sovereignty and the    
book of knowledge survived from the     
,byzantine school2 but those  symbols   
which first appeared or came into       
fashion1 as it were1 at the             
,renaissance were fruits and flowers4   
,it was not strange that it should be   
so4 ,the new interest in the  literature
 of ancient ,greece and ,rome had       
revived the old classical  love of      
nature1 of running brooks and leafy     
forests1 and of all the  fresh unspoiled
 things which shoot up clean and        
fragrant from the  earth4 ,saint        
,francis with his #8jesters of the      
,lord' had gone singing  through the    

vineyards praising ,god for the light of
 the sun1 for the  birds1 for the grass4
 ,his song was taken up by the          
troubadours1 who  also sang of the fair 
things of the fields1 though their leit 
motif  was earthly1 rather than         
heavenly1 love4    ,the minnesingers of 
,germany sang of roses1 spring-tide1    
love and  chivalry1 and three of the    
sweetest-throated1 ,walther von der     
,vogelweide1 ,godfried von ,strassburg  
and ,conrad von ,wrtzburg1 each  before 
he died1 composed a song in honour of   
the ,virgin4    ,in ,provence the ,lady 
,clmence ,isaure instituted the ,jeux   
,floraux1 and  for those who excelled in
 song there were three awards1 a violet1
 an  eglantine and a marigold1 all      
wrought in gold4 ,later a silver lily   
was  added as the prize for the best    
sonnet celebrating the perfections of   
the ,virgin4 ,the rules of this ,mayday 
tournament of song proclaimed that      
#8these games are for the amusement of  
the people1 for the honour of ,god  as  

the giver of good gifts of trees and    
flowers1 and to praise ,him1  because   
nature1 which had been dead1 now lives  
again4'    ,the world was now beginning 
to see the value of these #8good gifts4'
  ,chaucer could find no higher emblem  
for the ,virgin than a flower3          
#8,and thou that art the floure of      
,virgins all2'    while ,dante1 who1    
more than any other single writer1 has  
influenced  sacred art1 uses the same   
imagery3       #8,here is the ,rose     
,wherein the ,word ,divine was made     
incarnate1      ,and here the lilies1 by
 whose order known      ,the way of life
 was followed4'    ,the ,churchmen of   
the day caught the spirit of the        
,humanists1 and there  sprang up a      
school of symbolists who concerned      
themselves largely with  plants1 fruits 
and flowers4 ,the writings of the early 
symbolists1  ,origen1 ,saint ,melitus1  
,bishop of ,sardes1 ,saint ,jerome1     
,saint ,ambrose1  ,walafrid ,strabo and 
,raban ,maur1 ,archbishop of ,mayence1  

were re-studied  and their allusions to 
the plant world noted4 ,durandus1       
,bishop of  ,mende1 whose ,rationale1   
published in #abie1 is still considered 
the  supreme authority on the spiritual 
significance of ,church architecture    
and ,church ornament1 held flowers in   
general to be the emblems of  goodness4 
#8,they represent1 like the trees1 those
 good works which  have the virtues for 
roots4' ,growing things1 he considered1 
could very  beautifully supplement the  
ritual of the ,church1 and he recommends
 that  #8on ,palm ,sunday the people    
should deck themselves with flowers1    
olive  branches and palms1 the flowers  
to signify the virtues of the ,holy     
,one1 the olive branches ,his office as 
peace-bringer and the palms ,his        
victory over ,satan4'    ,there were    
those symbolists who1 like ,durandus of 
,mende and the  ,cardinal ,petrus of    
,capua1 valued the symbol entirely as a 
means of  interpreting the doctrines of 
the ,church4 ,their definition was that 

of  ,hugues de ,saint-,victor3 #8,the   
symbol is the allegorical representation
  of a ,christian principle under a     
material form'2 and they simply         
searched for those objects which best   
suited their purpose4 ,then  there were 
those symbolists who1 like ,saint       
,hildegarde1 ,abbess of  ,rupertsburg1  
mixed their symbolism strangely with    
herbalism and magic4  ,a plant of       
healing virtues was a good plant1       
attributed to the ,virgin  or a saint1  
and typifying their virtues1 and a      
harmful plant was evil1  beneath the    
patronage of the ,devil1 typifying and  
inducing envy1  hatred1 or perhaps      
malice4    ,lastly there were the mystic
 symbolists1 and it is they who have had
  most influence on pictorial art4      
,there were those who1 like ,saint      
,bernard of ,clairvaux1 could discern   
through the darkened glass of ,old      
,testament metaphor the divine facts of 
,new ,testament revelation1 and  those  
who1 like ,saint ,mectilda of ,germany1 

were favoured by ,heaven  with clear and
 detailed visions1 in which ,christ     
,himself deigned to  explain the        
complicated symbolism of ,his           
surroundings1 ,his embroidered  robes   
and jewelled ornaments4 ,and there were 
those mystics who were not  in holy     
orders1 who did not claim direct        
communication with ,heaven1  yet who    
have1 nevertheless1 by giving shape and 
colour to the vague  indications of     
,holy ,writ as to the future state1 and 
by materializing1  as it were1 the      
illusive inner vision of things         
invisible1 profoundly  influenced the   
religious sentiment1 if not the         
theology1 of the world4  ,chief among   
them is the poet ,dante1 the friend of  
,giotto and the  spiritual father of    
both the poets and the artists of the   
,italian  ,renaissance4 ,in ,germany his
 place was taken by ,conrad von         
,wrtzburg1 a  poet of infinitely less   
genius but who equally influenced his   
native  art1 at least as far as         

devotional representations of the       
,virgin ,mary  were concerned4 ,he was a
 minnesinger who consecrated the last   
effort of  a long life to praising the  
virtues of her whom he terms #8,the     
,empress  of ,heaven4' ,about the year  
#abhf he wrote #8,the ,golden ,forge1'  
which he  describes as3       #8,a      
golden song      ,forged in the smithy  
of my heart      ,and beautifully inlaid
      ,with the jewelled thoughts of my 
heart4'    ,it is an eulogy of the      
,virgin1 close-packed with allegory1    
simile and  metaphor1 which are borrowed
 for the greater part from the ,fathers 
of  the ,church1 but some few are of his
 own finding4    ,his work was never to 
be compared with that of the great      
,italian1 but  it very strongly         
influenced the hymnology and the        
pictorial expression  of the cult of the
 ,virgin in both the ,netherlands and   
,germany4    ,in ,england there was no  
great symbolist among the early poets4  
,they were plain tales of love and war  

that ,chaucer told in #8,english        
undefyled4' ,but the ,church in ,england
 produced some beautiful mystical       
hymns1 notably the one to the ,virgin1  
written1 perhaps1 about #acej1  which   
begins3       #8,of a rose1 a lovely    
rose1      ,of a rose is al myn song4'  
99       99       99       99       99  
,religious pictures are of two types3   
the historical1 which aims at  depicting
 a sacred scene exactly as it did occur2
 and the devotional1  which presents a  
divine or holy figure in the attitude   
and with the  surroundings best         
calculated to inflame the devotion of   
the worshipper4    ,to the first        
category belongs ,rubens' #8,descent    
from the ,cross4'#d ,the  dead ,figure1 
the sustained effort of the men who     
detach it from the  ,cross1 the         
grief-stricken women1 are all depicted  
with perfect realism  and strict        
attention to historical detail4 ,it     
merely depicts the scene  as it might   
have occurred1 and no attempt is made to

 guide or suggest  the emotions of the  
beholder4    ,to the second category    
belong many of the early ,crucifixions4 
,the  figure of the ,saviour is         
emaciated to a painful degree4 ,on each 
side  of the ,cross hover angels        
catching in a chalice the holy blood as 
it  falls4 ,at the summit a nesting     
pelican tears its breast2 at the foot  a
 skull is placed within a niche4 ,here a
 distinct emotional appeal  is made--to 
man's pity1 for the sufferings of the   
,christ2 to his  gratitude1 since the   
preciousness of the holy blood is so    
emphasized4  ,the pelican in its piety  
is the symbol of ,christ's devotion to  
,his  ,church1 and the skull invites    
meditation upon the eternal death from  
which ,he saved us4    ,in pictures of  
the devotional type the spiritual cause 
or effect of the  incident illustrated  
is usually indicated by symbols4 ,the   
reason why  the ,godhead sits as a child
 upon ,his ,mother's knee is indicated  
by the  apple which ,he holds in ,his   

hand4 ,as the fruit of the ,tree of     
,knowledge  of ,good and ,evil it is the
 symbol of ,adam's fault1 which1 through
 ,his  incarnation1 ,christ             
repaired--and1 thereby1 to instructed   
,christians1  it foretells the tragedy  
of the ,crucifixion4 ,so1 in an         
,annunciation1  the lily in the angel   
,gabriel's hand indicates the quality by
 which  ,mary found favour in ,god's    
sight1 and it foreshadows also the      
sinless  birth of the ,saviour4    ,it  
should be clearly understood to which   
figure in a composition the  symbols    
used refer4 ,when a personage of mortal 
birth1 prophet1 apostle1  martyr or     
saint1 holds a symbol or attribute1 it  
almost invariably  refers to his own    
history4 ,archangels usually hold their 
own attribute1  but the symbols or      
emblems which angels carry1 or which are
 used  decoratively1 placed against the 
sky or laid upon the ground1 are  always
 to be referred to the principal figure 
in the scene represented4  ,the sword   

and lily in a #8,last ,judgment'        
represent the omnipotence and  integrity
 of the ,judge2 the rose and lily in an 
#8,assumption' the love  and the purity 
of the ,madonna2 the palm in a martyrdom
 the triumph of  the martyr4            
,,ii    ,,the ,,flower ,,symbolists     
,christian symbolists divided the plant 
world into three divisions--the  good1  
the bad1 and those which1 from want of  
definite characteristics1  were not     
worthy of notice4 ,in their judgment    
they were guided by  several principles4
    ,in the first place1 and this was   
the most important method1 they         
searched the ,scriptures for their      
warrant as to the good or evil          
tendencies of any plant or flower4      
,those with whom the ,divinity had      
identified ,himself took precedence of  
all others4 ,christ had said1  #8,i am  
the ,true ,vine1' and the vine1 since   
the earliest days of  ,christianity1 has
 had the place of highest honour in the 
decoration  of ,christian churches as   

the emblem of ,christ ,himself4 ,when   
the  difficulties were removed which    
prevented the ,early ,church from       
representing ,christ under ,his own     
form1 the emblem was less seen1 but  it 
has always remained a sacred plant1 and 
designs based upon its form  still      
frequently decorate the altar and the   
sacred vessels4    ,also those plants   
introduced as metaphors in the ,song of 
,solomon1  #8the flower of the field1'  
#8the lily of the valleys1' #8the lily  
among  thorns1' #8the orchard of        
pomegranates1' myrrh and camphire1      
spikenard1  saffron and cinnamon1 trees 
of frankincense and #8the chief spices1'
  which refer to the #8,beloved' and the
 #8,spouse1' are all considered holy    
plants1 and by the ,roman ,catholic     
,church are assigned to the ,virgin     
,mary4    ,in the beautiful             
twenty-fourth chapter of                
,ecclesiasticus1 too1  ,christian       
symbolists have recognized the ,virgin  
,mary beneath the figure  of ,wisdom1   

and hold as sanctified those growing    
things to which she is  likened4    #8,i
 was exalted like a palm tree in        
,engeddi1 and as a rose plant in        
,jericho1 as a fair olive tree in a     
pleasant field1 and grew up as a  plane 
tree by the water4    #8,as the         
turpentine tree ,i stretched out my     
branches1 and my branches  are the      
branches of honour and grace4    #8,as  
the vine brought ,i forth pleasant      
savour1 and my flowers are the  fruit of
 honour and riches4'    ,in the second  
place1 those flowers and plants which   
are beneficial to  man1 as the wheat and
 the olive1 were decided to be good1 and
 those  that were hurtful to man1 as the
 tare and the thistle1 were evil4 ,here 
herbalism and magic step very close to  
symbolism1 for healing plants1  or those
 which were useful as a charm against   
the devil1 were good2  those which were 
poisonous1 or used for evil purpose1    
such as raising a  spirit1 were bad4    
,thus the nettle1 which1 when used with 

due ceremony1  dissipates fear1 becomes 
a symbol of courage1 and myrrh1 which is
  an antidote to love-philtres and      
drives away voluptuous thoughts1  is    
held to be a plant of chastity4 ,of this
 particular species of  symbolism       
,albertus ,magnus1#e ,master of ,saint  
,thomas ,aquinas1 and ,saint            
,hildegarde1#f ,abbess of ,rupertsburg1 
were the principal exponents4    ,also a
 plant's habit of growth was taken as an
 indication of its  character4 ,the     
cedar1 with unbending head and          
grandly-spreading  branches1 was        
considered1 both by ,saint ,melitus and 
,petrus of ,capua1  to typify pride1    
while the violet1 wearing the colour of 
mourning1 and  keeping timidly beneath  
its leaves1 they chose as a symbol of   
humility4    ,some symbols were of pagan
 origin1 for the palm of victory and the
  olive branch of peace were borrowed   
from the ,romans1 who had themselves    
inherited them from older civilizations4
 ,their significance was not  changed   

but simply limited and sanctified2 the  
victory1 for ,christians1  was the      
victory over sin1 and the peace1 the    
peace of ,god4    ,these various methods
 of determining the value of different  
plants as  symbols did not always       
accord4 ,m4 ,huysman1 in ,la ,cathdrale1
 a very  complete study in ,christian   
symbolism1 instances the sycamore3      
#8,saint  ,melitus proclaims that the   
sycamore stands for cupidity4444 ,raban 
,maur  and ,l'anonyme de ,clairvaux     
qualify it as the unbelieving ,jew2     
,petrus  of ,capua compares it to the   
,cross1 ,saint ,eucher to wisdom4'      
,even the sifting of the text of        
,scripture did not always lead to       
identical conclusions4 #8,i am the rose 
of ,sharon' 7or #8the flower of  the    
field'7 #8and the lily of the valleys1' 
sings the lover of the  ,canticles1 who 
prefigures1 according to ,origen1 ,jesus
 ,christ4 ,but ,saint  ,bernard of      
,clairvaux found that the words veiled  
the personality of the  ,virgin ,mary1  

and other writers consider that they    
refer to the ,church  of ,god upon      
earth4    ,there were1 in fact1 two     
schools of symbolists though they did   
not  differ greatly4 ,there were those  
who wrote before the eleventh century   
and whose influence is traced in the    
mosaics of ,rome1 ,ravenna and  the     
,baptistery of ,florence1 and those     
later ones whose authority was  accepted
 by the painters of the ,italian        
,renaissance and through them  spread   
throughout the ,christian world4        
,durandus1 standing midway  between the 
two schools of symbolism1 held chiefly  
to the more ancient1  though he also    
recognized the newer1 usage4    ,but    
after the twelfth century the painters  
of ,siena alone kept to the  ancient    
meaning of the symbols2 ,florence and   
the later schools broke  away entirely4 
,as far as flower-symbols were concerned
 the chief difference was in the  use of
 the lily1 which from being the flower  
indicative of heavenly  bliss became the

 especial flower of the ,virgin1        
typifying her purity4  ,also the rose1  
the flower of martyrdom1 became the     
symbol of divine  love1 and the palm    
tree and the acanthus dropped out of    
devotional  representations altogether4 
,in the main1 after the twelfth century1
 symbolists were agreed4 ,there  were   
certain fruits and flowers about which  
there never had been any  doubt4 ,the   
vine had been the emblem of ,jesus      
,christ from the beginning  of          
,christian theology4 ,the white lily1 as
 a symbol of chastity1 came  perhaps    
from the ,hebrews1 but all ,christian   
writers were agreed as to  its fitness  
as a symbol of purity and as an emblem  
or attribute of the  ,virgin ,mary4 ,the
 violet was the symbol of humility1 and 
therefore1 say  ,petrus of ,capua and   
,saint ,mectilda1 the emblem of ,christ 
when on earth4  ,saint ,mectilda and    
,bishop ,durandus1 for the same reason1 
consider it  the emblem of confessors4  
,the rose was long in disgrace as the   

flower of ,venus4 ,but even saints      
could not exclude it from their lives1  
and gradually it crept into  ,christian 
hagiology4 ,roses decorate some of the  
most poetical of the  histories in the  
,legenda ,aurea1 which was compiled by  
,jacobus de  ,voragine1 ,archbishop of  
,genoa1 during the last half of the     
thirteenth  century1 and there are roses
 in plenty in the pictures of the       
fifteenth  century4 ,their meaning1 at  
first sight1 is not so clearly defined  
as  is that of some other flowers4      
,raban ,maur and ,l'anonyme de          
,clairvaux  had used them as the type of
 charity2 ,durandus had explained them1 
red  and white1 as emblems of martyrs   
and virgins4 ,walafrid ,strabo also     
considered them the symbols of          
martyrdom1 but in the ,golden ,legend   
and  in the pictures of the             
,renaissance1 when plucked and falling1 
or when  sent from ,heaven1 they are    
symbols of divine love2 when they are   
woven  into wreaths they symbolize      

heavenly joy4    ,the symbolism of the  
lesser flowers is not so clear1 but the 
water  lily and the saffron as well as  
the rose were held by ,raban ,maur to be
  symbols of charity2 verdure1 according
 to ,durandus1 was the emblem of        
beginners in the faith2 the heath1      
hyssop1 convolvulus and violet all      
represent humility2 the lettuce         
temperance2 the elder1 zeal2 and the    
thyme1 activity4 ,of these1 however1    
with the exception of the violet1       
,christian art has taken little note4   
,there are certain flowers which appear 
repeatedly in pictures which  represent 
the garden of ,heaven2 they grow in the 
#8,enclosed ,garden'  of the ,madonna1  
and surround the ,infant ,christ when   
,he is laid upon  the ground to receive 
adoration4 ,they are the rose and the   
lily1 and  also the violet1 the pink and
 the strawberry1 the last with fruit and
  flowers together4 ,the symbolists are 
unanimous in ascribing humility  to the 
violet2 the pink or carnation1 which is 

usually introduced when  there are no   
roses1 is1 like the rose1 the flower of 
divine love2 the  strawberry with fruit 
and flower represents the good works of 
the  righteous1 or the fruits of the    
spirit4    ,to these are sometimes added
 the clover and the columbine4          
,according  to the legend1 ,saint       
,patrick was the first to use the       
trefoil as an  illustration of the      
,trinity in ,unity1 and the shamrock or 
clover is  the emblem of the ,holy      
,trinity4 ,the little doves which make  
up the  flower of the columbine         
wonderfully resemble the little doves   
which in  early art1 particularly in the
 ,french miniatures of the thirteenth   
and  fourteenth centuries1 represent the
 seven gifts of the ,holy ,spirit4 ,it  
is true that in the columbine the little
 doves number five1 not seven1  but the 
,flemish artists1 always extremely      
careful in their symbolism1  rectified  
this by painting the plant with seven   
blooms upon it4 ,it  should only be used

 as the attribute of ,god the ,son4     
,towards the end of the fifteenth       
century a tiny niche was made for  the  
daisy in ,christian iconography4 ,it is 
found almost exclusively  in            
#8,adorations1' where it replaces the   
lilium candidum4 ,it was  felt that1    
suitable as the tall austere lily might 
be to express the  ,virgin's purity or  
the celibacy of the monastic saints1 the
 little  wide-eyed daisy was a prettier1
 sweeter symbol of the perfect innocence
  of the ,divine ,child4    ,the jasmine
 is not strictly a holy flower and has  
been neglected by  the writers on       
symbolism1 but it appears repeatedly in 
religious art4  ,its star-shaped blossom
 seems to be the symbol of divine hope  
or of  heavenly felicity1 and it is     
found with roses and lilies beside the  
,madonna4 ,it forms the crowns of       
angels1 of saints1 and of the ,madonna  
herself4 ,when it is the attribute of   
the ,infant ,christ it recalls the      
,heaven from which ,he came4    ,the    

,english and ,flemish miniaturists add  
to these the pansy1 which is  the old   
herb ,trinity1#g bearing the same       
meaning as the clover4    ,in the       
,netherlands and ,germany the lily of   
the valley was also used1  with meek    
purity as its significance4    ,all     
these flowers1 on account of some       
accident of shape1 colour or  habit of  
growth1 were considered holy flowers1   
while others1 such as  the buttercup1   
the narcissus1 the forget-me-not1 were  
rejected as  meaningless4 ,fruit in     
general represents good works1 or the   
fruits of  the ,spirit1 faith1 hope and 
peace1 and is accounted good2 the vine  
is  the emblem of ,christ ,himself1 but 
the fruit1 usually taken to be the      
apple1 which grew on the ,tree of       
,knowledge of ,good and ,evil1 is an    
accursed thing4    ,there are flowers1  
too1 which are the flowers of evil4 ,the
 poppy  is the emblem of sloth and also 
dedicated to ,venus2 the tulip is       
beloved of necromancers2 the black      

hellebore and the mandrake are  used by 
witches in their spells1 though1        
strangely enough1 ,conrad von  ,wrtzburg
 compares the ,virgin ,mary to the      
#8healing mandrake root4' ,also  the    
nettle is the symbol of envy1 the       
hellebore of scandal1 and the  cyclamen 
of voluptuousness1 for1 according to    
,theophrastus1 it was used  in the      
composition of love philtres4    ,as to 
thorns and briars1 ,saint ,thomas       
,aquinas and ,saint ,anselm are  agreed 
that thorn branches signify the minor   
sins1 and briars 7or  thistles7 those   
major ones #8qu pungunt conscientiam    
propriam1' etc4    ,above all the       
buckthorn is blamed1 for of its         
branches1 says ,rohault de  ,fleury1 was
 formed the ,crown of ,thorns4    ,in   
art1 however1 the flowers of evil       
scarcely appear4 ,the rose is still     
sometimes the flower of ,venus and      
symbolizes the pomps and vanities of    
the world1 and there are the thorns of  
sin and death4 ,some of the early       

,flemish and ,german artists painted    
certain bitter herbs1 notably the       
dandelion1 in scenes from the ,passion1 
but ,christian iconography has          
concerned itself chiefly with those     
plants and flowers which1 with the      
approval of theologians1 represent the  
attributes of the ,divinity1 of  the    
,virgin ,mary and of angels1 saints and 
prophets4    ,it may be noticed that    
while the sacred flowers are not        
unfrequently  introduced into profane   
scenes1 the non-sacred flowers1 for     
instance  the daffodils and foxgloves of
 the hunting scenes on old ,flemish     
tapestry1 are never introduced as       
symbols1 and rarely as details1 in      
devotional subjects4    ,the same       
symbolism holds good within the whole   
,western ,church1 and  those ,reformed  
,churches which have rejected painted   
and carved images  have preserved a good
 many of the older symbols in the       
details of  church decoration4 ,the most
 important symbols of ,christianity1    

the ,lamb1 the ,dove1 the ,cross1 the   
,glory1 the ,halo1 remain always        
unchanged4 ,it is the lesser1 and more  
especially the flower symbols1  which   
vary in different countries and         
different schools of painting4  ,italy  
being the headquarters of the ,church1  
and also the centre from  which         
pictorial art spread over ,europe1 most 
symbols are of ,latin  origin2 but they 
were modified and often amplified by    
inherited  tradition1 climate and the   
general trend of the national religious 
sentiment4 ,so in ,italian art1 after   
its re-birth1 we find a love of  simple 
lines1 of refined types1 of flowers1 and
 a striving at first  unconscious1 then 
definite1 after classical ideals1 while 
the ,northern  nations1 less happy in   
their traditions1 never quite conquered 
their  love of barbaric splendour2 a    
rose wrought in pure gold was to them   
more truly a symbol of divine love than 
a fresh rose of the field4    ,the most 
important factor in the modification of 

flower symbolism was  climate4 ,as the  
primary use of a symbol was to instruct 
the unlearned1  the symbol which was to 
interpret the hidden mystery must be a  
familiar  object4 ,a rare or exotic     
plant would rather have complicated than
  simplified the teaching4 ,so we find  
the pomegranate and the olive in        
,italian pictures1 but not in those of  
the ,netherlands2 the columbine  and the
 lily of the valley in ,german1 but not 
in ,spanish art4    ,but it was not     
climate alone that determined the use or
 disuse of any  particular plant as a   
symbol4 ,if the fleur-de-lys1 founded   
upon the  iris form1 had not been borne 
by the ,house of ,burgundy1 which       
protected  the early ,flemish school1 it
 is possible that the iris might not    
have  appeared in the early ,flemish    
pictures as a flower of the ,virgin1    
and certainly had there not been a      
continual interchange of ,flemish       
merchandise1 which included painted     
panels1 for ,spanish gold1 the  iris    

would not have taken its place as the   
characteristic flower of a  ,spanish    
#8,immaculate ,conception4'    ,also1   
had there not been ceaseless warfare and
 everlasting hatred  between ,florence  
and ,siena1 it is possible that ,siena  
would have  adopted the lily as an      
attribute of ,mary in an ,annunciation  
instead  of using invariably the olive  
branch4 ,but the lily was the badge of  
,florence and the cities were           
desperately jealous of each other1 both 
in  painting and in politics1 and this  
seems to be the real reason of the      
conservatism of ,sienese art4    ,on the
 whole the symbolism of the ,netherlands
 is the most careful  and just1 and each
 flower was painted also with such      
exquisite  minuteness that there is no  
possibility of mistaking the variety4   
,italian symbolism was always apt to be 
superficial1 and after the  fifteenth   
century often became confused with      
decoration4 ,also the  ,italians painted
 flowers carelessly1 and the lesser     

kinds1 those in the  foreground of an   
,adoration1 for instance1 are frequently
 impossible to  identify4 ,in ,germany  
symbolism is at times extravagant and   
far-fetched  though always interesting4 
,in ,spain it is poor and almost        
entirely  borrowed4 ,a modern writer#h  
observes of ,spanish art that it is     
material1 brutal1 ,roman1 having1 from  
its geographical position1  escaped the 
idealism of ,greek or the mysticism of  
,celtic influences2  and the same cause 
may also explain the prosaicness of its 
symbolism4    ,the ,english love of     
flowers1 very noticeable in early verse1
 found  pictorial expression chiefly in 
the work of the miniaturists and in the 
#8flower work' details of architecture4 
,the miniatures executed by monks       
usually pay attention to the symbolical 
value of each blossom1 but the  carved  
stone flowers common in both ,french and
 ,english ,gothic churches  were more   
often simply those which the fancy of   
the architect or the  stone-cutter      

dictated and only represent vaguely     
#8good works springing  from the root of
 virtues4'    ,the happiest blooming    
time of these symbolical flowers was the
  fifteenth century4 ,in the fourteenth 
century artists1 still timid of         
innovations1 had limited themselves to  
the lily and the rose4 ,but with        
increasing skill they made a wider      
choice1 though always under the  eye and
 with the assistance of those learned in
 such matters1 for the  majority of     
sacred pictures were commissioned       
directly by the ,church or  were ordered
 as a gift to be presented to some      
religious community4    ,there were     
occasionally independent spirits who1 in
 some favourite  blossom1 so far        
unnoticed1 found beauty and symbolic    
fitness4 ,thus ,sano  di ,pietro of     
,siena constantly paints the bright blue
 cornflower 7which  in ,italy shares its
 name of fiordaliso with the iris1 the  
lily and  the heraldic fleur-de-lys7    
upon the heads of both angels and       

saints1  meaning1 perhaps1 by the blue  
stars1 to indicate that these beings    
were denizens of the heavenly spaces4   
,however1 as a rule1 artists  were      
conservative and glad to use the        
recognized symbols as a means of        
emphasizing and elucidating the sacred  
subject which they depicted4    ,but    
even before the end of the fifteenth    
century flowers began  to be used for   
their own sake and not for their hidden 
meaning4  ,leonardo da ,vinci and       
,albert ,drer painted just what flower  
or weed  they chose1 simply for its form
 or colour4 ,in the sixteenth century   
flowers were often used merely as       
decoration1 and later1 with the         
exception of the rose1 the lily1 the    
olive branch and the palm1 they  lost   
all meaning4 ,carlo ,maratta in the     
seventeenth century painted a  figure of
 the ,virgin#i encircled by a heavy     
wreath of every sort of                 
flower--daffodils1 gentians1 anemones1  
tulips1 edelweiss1 roses and  lilies1   

all mixed together4    ,in ,england1    
about the middle of the nineteenth      
century1 there was a  revival of        
interest in mystical and symbolical art4
 ,the ,preraphaelite  ,brotherhood was  
formed in #ahdh1 whose object was to    
bring back to  modern art the sincerity 
and earnestness of those painters who   
had  preceded ,raphael4 ,the originator 
of the movement1 ,dante ,gabriel        
,rossetti1 adopted in his early work not
 only the simplicity of type and  the   
exceedingly careful finish of the       
primitives1 but borrowed also  their    
system of symbolism4 ,his followers1    
however1 and in particular  ,holman     
,hunt1 broke away from the old          
traditions of religious art1  painting  
allegorical subjects suggested by       
,christ's parables and  sayings rather  
than the scenes of ,his birth and       
,passion on which the  dogmas of the    
,church were founded1 and with the      
traditional subjects  they left aside   
also the traditional symbols4    ,the   

greatest of modern ,english mystical    
painters1 ,george ,frederick  ,watts1   
uses flowers as details1 and apparently 
as symbols4 ,but their  exact meanings  
are obscure and apparently not those    
attributed to them  by the great masters
 of past centuries4    ,illustration3   
,,the ,,badge ,,of ,,the ,,order ,,of   
,,the ,,lily ,,of ,,navarre             
,illustration3                          
,photo ,alinari    ,,the ,,flowers ,,of 
,,heaven    ,mosaic of the #acth century
    7,baptistry1 ,florence7             
,,iii    ,,the ,,lily      ,gioacchino  
di ,fiore1 the mystical theologian who  
founded the community  of #8,the        
,flower1' and who is held by some to be 
the spiritual father  of ,saint         
,francis1 writing in the last decade of 
the twelfth century1  divided the life  
of humanity into three periods4 ,in the 
first1 during  the reign of the ,father1
 men lived under the rule of the law2 in
 the  second1 reigned over by the ,son1 
men live beneath the rule of grace2 in  

the third the ,spirit shall reign and   
men shall live in the plenitude  of     
love4 ,the first saw the shining of the 
stars2 the second sees the  whitening of
 the dawn2 the third will behold the    
glory of the day4 ,the  first produced  
nettles2 the second gives roses2 the    
third will be the  age of lilies4       
,thus as daylight to dawn or starlight1 
and as love to grace and fear1  were    
lilies to every other flower or weed1   
and since the twelfth  century1 in      
,christian art1 lilies have had         
precedence of every other  growing      
thing4    ,the earliest use of the lily 
by the artists of the ,christian ,church
 was  to indicate the delights of       
,paradise4 ,raban ,maur1 ,archbishop of 
,mayence  in #hdg1 writes of lilies as  
the symbols of celestial beatitude1 and 
that is apparently what they represent  
in the mosaics of ,rome1 ,ravenna  and  
the ,baptistery of ,florence1 where they
 spring from the ground in  the scenes  
which represent ,heaven4    ,but by the 

tenth century the ,church had commenced 
to adopt the  pre-,christian employment 
of the lily as the symbol of purity1 and
 the  rose gradually took the lily's    
place as the flower of heavenly bliss4  
,the lily of sacred art is the lilium   
candidum1 sometimes called the  ,madonna
 lily1 or the lily of ,saint ,catharine4
 ,it is said to be a native  of the     
,levant1 but appears to have spread with
 ,roman civilization  throughout        
,europe4 ,the suggestion of abstract    
purity is arresting and  direct4 ,the   
stalk is straight and upright1 the      
leaves narrow1 plain1  almost austere4  
,at the top of the long stalk the       
flowers cluster1 each  chalice-shaped1  
and sending to the sky a perfume which  
is singularly  sweet and piercing4      
,their form is simple but noble1 and    
they are above  all remarkable for the  
immaculate and luminous whiteness of    
their firm  petals4    ,after the       
twelfth century the lily is always used 
as the symbol of  purity in its         

perfection1 and is most usually         
associated with the  ,virgin ,mary and  
with saints of the monastic orders4     
,more rarely it is  used as an attribute
 of the ,persons of the ,holy ,trinity4 
,in a large  picture#aj representing the
 ,trinity in ,glory1 by an unknown      
,neapolitan  painter of the seventeenth 
century1 ,god the ,father holds a stalk 
of  lilies in his left hand1 above which
 hovers the mystic ,dove4 ,since        
,christian iconography gives no         
attributes to ,god the ,father except   
the  orb and crown of omnipotence1 the  
lily must be taken as the attribute  of 
the ,holy ,ghost2 and in a rare subject1
 ,the ,adoration of the ,holy           
,ghost1#aa ascribed by ,behrenson to the
 ,amico di ,sandro1 the two  angels with
 swinging censers and lovely floating   
draperies1 who adore  the hovering      
,dove1 carry each a lily4 ,the ,dove in 
conjunction with  the lily is also found
 upon the great central doors of ,saint 
,peter  in ,rome4 ,they are of bronze1  

and were executed between #adci and     
#adde  by ,antonio ,filarete4 ,there are
 two panels with elaborate borders and  
much interesting detail4 ,on one is     
,saint ,peter with the keys and on  the 
other ,saint ,paul4 ,saint ,paul is of  
the traditional type1 bald and  bearded1
 and holds in his right hand a drawn    
sword4 ,by his side is a  large vase of 
lilies1 and on the highest flower1 its  
beak touching the  sword's hilt1 is the 
,dove1 encircled by a halo4 ,the lilies 
and the ,dove  are introduced apparently
 to correct the impression of violence  
given  by the uplifted sword1 the       
instrument of the ,apostle's martyrdom1 
and  together representing the ,holy    
,spirit1 they recall ,saint ,paul's own 
phrase1 #8the sword of the ,spirit4'    
,as an attribute of ,god the ,son1      
lilies are used in those pictures known 
as ,adorations1 where the divine ,child 
is laid upon the ground and the  ,mother
 kneels before ,him in worship2 and in  
those pictures where she  holds ,him1 no

 longer a very young infant1 on a ledge 
or pedestal before  her4 ,in these      
pictures all the symbolism refers to the
 ,child1 and if ,he  lie among roses and
 lilies they signify respectively divine
 love and  perfect sinlessness4 ,if     
angels hold vases of lilies on either   
side1  these lilies recall that ,he was 
born of a ,virgin4    ,the first        
,adorations were painted by the         
,florentine masters of the  fifteenth   
century4 ,in an early example by        
,filippo ,lippi#ab the flowers  are     
small and the species scarcely to be    
determined4 ,neri di ,bicci#ac  painted 
roses and lilies1 and ,luca della       
,robbia#ad has placed the  ,child       
beneath a freely-growing clump of tall  
lilies4 ,the ,virgin kneels  before     
,him1 while heavenly hands hold above   
her head a crown ornamented  with the   
royal fleur-de-lys4 ,botticelli#ae      
appears to have been the  first to have 
substituted the daisy for the lily1 and 
to the daisy he  added the violet of    

humility1 and the strawberry1 which     
symbolized the  fruits of the spirit4   
,these flowers were constantly repeated 
in this  connection1 a comparatively    
late example of their use being in the  
,adoration of ,perugino1 now in ,munich4
    ,these same flowers are found in the
 ,north1 but as ,northern artists       
preferred incidents definitely recounted
 by the ,scriptures to more  imaginative
 devotional subjects1 they were         
transferred to ,nativities or           
,adorations by the ,shepherds4    ,in   
,siena during the fourteenth century1   
and in the school of ,giotto1  the lily1
 usually a single lily-cup1 is sometimes
 placed in the hands  of the ,infant    
,christ4 ,here it is not the symbol of  
purity1 but in  accordance with the     
older symbolism it is the flower of     
,paradise4  ,siena was extremely        
conservative1 and for its artists the   
,holy ,child  was still the royal ,child
 of the ,byzantine school1 richly       
clothed1  ,his right hand raised in     

blessing or holding the orb of          
sovereignty4  ,sometimes ,he holds a    
scroll1 announcing ,his high mission1   
with the  words #8,ego sum lux mundi' or
 #8,ego sum via veritas et vita4' ,more 
stress is laid upon ,his divinity than  
upon ,his humanity1 and there  is       
absolutely nothing to hint at or        
forecast ,his passion4 ,he appears      
simply as the bringer of peace and      
blessing1 and in ,his hand is still  the
 flower of ,paradise1 the same lily     
which grows beside ,his throne in  the  
mosaics4    ,gradually1 however1 a fruit
 replaced the flower in the             
,christ-,child's  hand4 ,at first the   
fruit1 following an artistic tradition  
as old as the  fourth century1 was also 
a promise of heavenly bliss1 it was a   
fruit  from the heavenly gardens2 but it
 was soon identified as the fruit of    
the tree of ,knowledge of ,good and     
,evil1 since ,he1 as the ,second ,adam1 
had come to repair the fault of the     
first4    ,meanwhile in ,florence1      

during the fifteenth century1 the lily1 
already  the flower of the virgin       
saints1 was attributed more especially  
to the  ,virgin ,mary as the symbol of  
spotless purity1 and it became accepted 
throughout ,christendom with this       
significance4    ,therefore1 on the rare
 occasions after the fourteenth century 
when the  lily is placed in the hand of 
the ,infant ,christ it is the symbol of 
purity1 of ,his perfect sinlessness4 ,in
 the ,enthroned ,madonna of ,luca       
,signorelli#af ,he holds a large stalk  
of lilium candidum4 ,in the  great      
majority of representations of the      
,madonna with the ,child in  her arms   
only the symbol in the ,child's own hand
 refers to ,him2 other  symbols refer to
 ,mary4 ,but in this picture1 to the    
jewelled cross of  the ,baptist is      
attached a scroll with the legend1      
#8,ecce ,agnus ,dei1'  and all the      
symbols are the attributes of the       
,saviour4 ,besides the  lily1 which     
denotes perfect sinlessness1 there are  

two transparent  vases in which are     
jasmine1 violets and roses4 ,the        
jasmine's starry  blooms recall the     
,heaven which ,he has left1 the violet  
is a symbol of  ,his humility1 and the  
rose of ,his divine love4 ,in the wreath
 behind  the throne is jasmine again1   
with pendant trails of white            
convolvulus1  which is also an emblem of
 humility4#ag    ,occasionally the      
,infant ,christ is represented offering 
a branch of  lilies to a ,saint1#ah and 
then the lily represents the gift of    
chastity1 which ,he bestows4    ,it is  
only in modern times that ,christ1 grown
 to manhood1 has been  represented with 
a lily in ,his hand4 ,an instance is the
 fresco  illustrating the parable of the
 ,wise and the ,foolish ,virgins1       
painted  in #ahfd1 by ,lord ,leighton1  
,p4,r4,a41 for ,lindhurst ,church4 ,the 
virgins  stand on either side of the    
,celestial ,bridegroom1 who holds in    
,his  left hand the lily which          
emphasizes the mystical character of the

  divine nuptials4    ,it may be noticed
 in this connection that modern1 and    
more particularly  ,protestant1         
ecclesiastical art takes its subjects   
largely from the  parables of ,christ1 a
 usage unknown to the ,roman ,catholic  
,church during  the period when the     
great masters of art were in her        
service4    ,northern medival art1 that 
is1 the art of the ,flemish and ,german 
schools1 introduced the lily into       
representations of the ,last ,judgment1 
placing the sword and stalk of lilies1  
ray-wise1 behind the head of  the       
judging ,christ4 ,in the very early     
representations of this subject  ,christ
 is depicted with a two-edged sword     
issuing from ,his mouth1 in             
illustration of the text of the         
,revelation of ,saint ,john3    #8,and  
out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged 
sword4'    ,and again3    #8,which sword
 proceeded out of his mouth4'    ,but   
pictorially it was ugly and             
theologically it was harsh1 suggesting  

wrath rather than mercy as the          
determining impulse at the final doom4  
,then men remembered the promise to the 
righteous3    #8,the wilderness and the 
solitary places shall be glad for them2 
and the  desert shall rejoice and       
blossom as the rose4'#ai    ,and in a   
copy of the ,biblia ,pauperum#bj of the 
fifteenth century  we find a branch of  
roses so placed as to balance the sword1
 both set  diagonally like rays1 one on 
each side of the head of ,christ4 ,the  
rose  was placed on ,christ's right hand
 above the forgiven souls1 and clearly  
typified divine love and mercy2 the     
sword on the left was above the  damned1
 and typified divine condemnation4      
,but almost immediately the rose was    
replaced by the lily4 ,the lily  was1 in
 the fifteenth century1 the one         
distinctly sacred flower4 ,its          
lance-like habit of growth made it a    
most symmetrical pendant to the  sword1 
and possibly1 too1 the ,church of the   
,north1 stern both in  religious        

sentiment and in its pictorial          
expression1 preferred the  lily1 which  
typified the integrity of the judging   
,god1 to the rose1  symbol of ,his      
mercy4    ,the ,netherlands adopted the 
symbol4 ,it appears in ,memling's most  
impressive ,last ,judgment1#ba and in   
the ,last ,judgment of ,lucas van       
,leyden4#bb ,the same device was used by
 ,albert ,drer#bc and many of  the less 
known ,german masters2 but ,rubens1 in  
his magnificent picture  now in ,munich1
 has replaced the lily by a sceptre4    
,the lily1 used in this connection1 is  
not found in ,italian art1 for  though  
the ,netherlands1 ,germany and ,england 
adopted the symbolism of  ,italy1       
,italy1 though admiring greatly the     
technical excellence of the  ,flemish1  
rarely assimilated the ,northern        
conventions for the expression  of the  
intangible4    ,but the lily is usually 
reserved for virgin saints and martyrs1 
and  more particularly for her whom     
,chaucer names                          

#8,floure of ,virgins all'    --that is1
 the ,virgin ,mary4    ,the ,venerable  
,bede1 writing in the early part of the 
eighth century1  declares #8the great   
white lily' to be a fit emblem of the   
resurrection  of the ,virgin2 the pure  
white petals signifying her body2 the   
golden  anthers her soul within1 shining
 with celestial light4    ,according to 
,petrus ,cantius1 cantor of the         
,cathedral ,school of ,paris  in the    
early part of the thirteenth century1   
the lily represented the  daughter of   
,joachim herself1 by reason of its      
whiteness1 its aroma1  delectable above 
all others1 its curative virtues1 and   
finally because  it springs from        
uncultivated soil as the ,virgin was the
 issue of ,jewish  parents4    ,as to   
its curative virtues1 it may be added   
that an anonymous ,english  monk1       
writing in the thirteenth century1      
prescribes the lily as a  sovereign     
remedy for burns2 and for the reason    
that #8it is a figure of  the ,madonna1 

who also cures burns1 that is1 the vices
 or burns of the  soul4'#bd    ,but     
though theologians occasionally used the
 lily as a symbol of  virginity1 before 
the eleventh century we do not find it  
associated  with the ,mother of ,christ 
pictorially1 either as her emblem or her
  attribute4 ,there are no lilies in the
 ,catacombs1 and those in the  early    
mosaics are decorative1 or symbols of   
the joy of ,heaven4 ,the  miniaturists  
occasionally used the flower as the     
attribute of virgin  martyrs1 but not in
 representations of the ,virgin4    ,it 
was by a ,spanish king that the lily was
 first definitely1 and in a  manner     
pictorially1 associated with the ,mother
 of ,christ--as her own  flower4 ,in the
 eleventh century ,spaniards and ,moors 
were each fighting  for their faith1 and
 the ,moslems instituted military orders
 called  rbitos1 the members of which   
were vowed to perpetual warfare against 
the #8infidel4'    ,the ,christian      
knights were not to be outdone1 and in  

#ajdc ,garcias  of ,navarre founded an  
order of chivalry vowed to the service  
of the  ,virgin1 which he named #8the   
,order of the ,lily of ,navarre4'       
,edmondson#be writes3 #8,the ,order of  
8,our ,lady of the ,lily10 or 8of       
,navarre10 was instituted in the city of
 ,nagera by ,garcias1 the sixth  ,king  
of ,navarre1 in the year #ajdc1 on the  
occasion of a miraculous  image of the  
,virgin ,mary issuing forth of a lily1  
and holding the  ,infant ,jesus in her  
arms1 being then discovered in that     
city4 ,this  order was composed of      
thirty knights1 chosen out of the       
principal  ancient families in ,navarre1
 ,biscay and old ,castile4 ,each of     
these  knights wore on his breast a lily
 embroidered in silver1 and1 on all     
festivals and holy days1 he wore about  
his neck a collar composed of  a double 
chain of gold interlaced with ,gothic   
capital letters ,m2 and  pendent        
thereunto an oval medal1 whereon was    
enamelled1 on a white  ground1 a lily of

 gold springing out of a mount1         
supporting a ,gothic  capital letter ,m1
 ducally crowned4'#bf    ,thus the lily 
became the gage of the ,virgin borne by 
her knights4 ,she  was now gradually    
moving from the subordinate though      
glorious station  as ,mother of the     
,incarnate ,word to a position of her   
own as ,queen of  ,heaven4 ,saint       
,ferdinand1 possibly unwilling to       
confront the ,moslem with  the ,christ  
whom they themselves revered as a       
prophet1 bore upon his  saddle-bow the  
ivory ,virgen de las ,batallas1#bg and  
perhaps what  specially endeared her to 
the people of ,spain was the knowledge  
that in  the fealty they paid her the   
infidel could have neither part nor lot4
  ,the chosen knight of the ,immaculate 
,virgin was1 of course1 ,santiago1      
,saint ,james1 the patron saint of      
,spain1 but every ,spanish cavalier     
acknowledged himself the servitor of the
 ,lady of the ,lily4    ,rather more    
than fifty years after the founding of  

the ,order of the  ,lily of ,navarre the
 poet-saint1 ,bernard of ,clairvaux1 was
 preaching  his famous series of        
,homilies on the ,song of ,solomon4 ,the
 sermons were  eighty in number1 each   
based on the text of the ,canticles1 and
 each  celebrating the perfections of   
the ,virgin4 ,differing from ,origen1 he
  found the ,virgin ,mary1 not the      
,christ1 to be the speaker of the words3
  #8,i am the rose of ,sharon and the   
lily of the valleys4' ,differing again  
from the ,church father1 he further     
identified #8the lily among thorns1'    
she who is addressed as #8my sister1 my 
spouse1' with the ,virgin and not  with 
the ,church of ,god upon ,earth4        
,saint ,bernard was the most popular    
preacher of his time2 his sermons       
became known throughout the ,christian  
world1 and to his influence may  be     
traced the high position which the      
,mother of ,christ now holds in  the    
,roman ,catholic ,church4 ,but1 so far1 
the lily had not appeared in  pictorial 

art in connection with the ,virgin4     
,in the twelfth century1 however1 we    
find ecclesiastical seals which  bear   
the figure of the ,virgin holding by the
 left hand 7or right1 as  it would      
appear on the impress7 the ,child1 and  
in her right a branch  of lilies4 ,two  
of these seals1 that of the ,dean and   
,chapter of ,lincoln  and that of       
,thornholm ,priory in ,lincolnshire1 are
 now in the ,british  ,museum4 ,it seems
 to have been the fashion in the        
eleventh1 twelfth and  thirteenth       
centuries to engrave the owner's figure 
on a seal with a  flower in the hand4   
,on the seal of ,capet ,henri ,i he is  
shown with a  sceptre in one hand and a 
fleur-de-lys in the other1 and the      
figures  on the seals of the ,queens of 
,france have a flower in either hand4   
,therefore it was only natural1 when    
cutting the ,virgin's figure on a  seal1
 that the craftsman should give her a   
flower too1 and the ,virgin's  own      
flower1 the lily4    ,the conservatism  

of churchmen and the traditions of      
,byzantine art  still kept lilies at the
 threshold of the ,church till the      
,renaissance  came4 ,it came like the   
spring1 uncertainly at first1 with puffs
 and  gusts and relapses1 but every day 
the atmosphere grew more genial1  more  
life-giving1 till at last every branch  
of human thought was alive  and growing4
 ,the old early ,christian fear of      
beauty as a devil's lure  was dying     
fast1 and as scholars and artists       
studied with new interest  the legacies 
of ancient ,greece and ,rome1 the old   
pagan joy of perfect  form in art as in 
literature revived once more4 ,a        
representation of  the climax of the    
,christian tragedy could only be an     
awful thing1 but  childhood and         
womanhood had the right to beauty4 ,the 
old ,byzantine  panels of the           
,child-,christ and ,his ,mother were    
little more than a  formula2 the lines  
and colour were not beautiful1 though   
understood  to represent a thing of     

beauty4 ,now artists and people required
 that  she who1 on the word of          
,scripture1 was #8the fairest among     
women1'#bh  should be adequately        
presented1 and the ,church gave consent4
 ,but it was  understood that the       
loveliness of the ,virgin should be     
strictly the  beauty of holiness1 for   
,saint ,ambrose had affirmed#bi that1 in
 the  ,mother of ,god1 corporeal beauty 
had been1 as it were1 the reflection  of
 the beauty of the soul1 and the early  
artists1 hampered by lack  of technical 
skill and confused by monkish ideals of 
asceticism1 too  often rendered their   
,madonnas emaciated and bloodless1 even 
languid and  fretful in expression1     
mistaking the outward signs of a subdued
 flesh  for those of a perfected spirit4
    ,it was at this time that ,saint    
,dominic came to ,italy with his fiery  
zeal1 his devotion to the ,virgin and   
his ,spanish traditions of the  flower  
of ,our ,lady4 ,for him1 the quality    
which raised her so far above  all other

 women was her spotlessness2 she was    
#8sin pecado1' #8,maria  ,purissima4'   
,her other phases1 as ,mother of the    
,sorrowful1 ,refuge  of ,sinners1 or    
,consoler of the ,afflicted1 were to him
 of secondary  importance4    ,already  
through the preaching of ,saint ,francis
 ,italian intellect had  been rendered  
capable of appreciating the beauty of   
simplicity4 ,each  artist knew that the 
true beauty of the ,queen of ,heaven was
 not to be  expressed by jewels or      
wonderfully-wrought raiment1 and as the 
words  of ,saint ,dominic passed from   
mouth to mouth1 the people of ,italy    
came  to understand that the most       
precious virtue of ,christ's ,mother was
 her  purity1 symbolized very fitly by  
the lily4 ,the symbol1 beautiful in     
itself1 and so suggestive of the quality
 it represented1 impressed the          
imagination clearly1 and presently there
 was a bloom of pictured lilies4    ,the
 mosaicist ,cavallini1#cj ,duccio di    
,buoninsegna1#ca ,giotto1#cb  ,simone   

,martini1#cc and ,orcagna#cd led the    
way1 and the ,christian  artists of the 
world have followed4 ,the earliest      
lilies flowered in  ,rome2 but ,siena1  
,umbria1 ,florence1 ,venice1 and later  
the ,netherlands  and ,germany1 all soon
 had their votaries of the mystic       
flower4 ,the  ,french ivory workers of  
the fourteenth century1 influenced      
doubtless  by the tradition of the      
seal-cutters1 frequently placed flowers 
in the  hand of the ,madonna4 ,these    
little ivory statuettes are usually very
  sweet in type and often exquisite in  
workmanship4 ,the ,child is held  on the
 left arm1 and the right hand holds a   
large single lily cup1 a  pear-like     
fruit1 or1 more generally1 a natural    
stalk of lilies with  leaves and        
flowers4 ,always when placed beside the 
,virgin1 or in her  hand1 the lily is   
the symbol of her purity1 and a lily    
standing alone1  as does the beautiful  
stem in pietra-dura work1 which         
decorates the  little oratory of #8,our 

,lady of the ,annunciation' in the      
,church of  the ,santissima ,annunziata 
of ,florence1 is the emblem of the      
,madonna  herself1 the #8,lilium inter  
,spinas4'    ,modern ,biblical          
commentators are agreed that the #8lily 
of the valleys'  of the ,song of        
,solomon is not the white lily of       
,europe but the scarlet  anemone4 ,the  
lilium candidum appears never to have   
grown in ,syria4 ,in  the late spring   
and early summer1 however1 the anemones 
grow thickly  in every grassy patch     
around ,jerusalem and throughout        
,palestine4 ,that  the flower mentioned 
is red seems indicated by the comparison
 between  it and the lips of the        
#8,beloved1' and the anemone1 which     
responds so  readily to the sun1        
throwing back its scarlet petals and    
baring its  heart to the warmth1 might  
well stand for the passionate lover of  
the  ,canticles4    ,but the fathers of 
the ,church held the flower to be a     
lilium1 and for  the ,church and for    

sacred art it was and remains the lilium
 candidum4    ,illustration3 ,from      
,french ,,ms4 of #adth ,century         
,,iv    ,,the ,,iris      ,the only     
rival to the lilium candidum as the lily
 of the ,virgin  is the iris4 ,strictly 
speaking1 it is not a lily at all1 for  
the  ,iridacea and the ,liliacea are    
distinct botanical orders4 ,but in      
,germany it is known as the sword-lily1 
from its sword-shaped leaves2 in        
,france it has always been identified   
with the #8fleur-de-lys'2 in ,spain  it 
is a #8lirio'--a lily--and ,shakespeare 
writes3       #8444 ,and lilies of all  
kinds      ,the ,flower-de-luce being   
one4'    ,its first appearance as a     
religious symbol is in the work of the  
early  ,flemish masters1 where it both  
accompanies and replaces the white lily 
as the flower of the ,virgin4 ,roger van
 der ,weyden#ce paints both  flowers in 
a vase before the ,virgin1 and the iris 
alone in another  picture#cf of ,mary   
with the ,holy ,child4 ,in his          

#8,annunciation'#cg the  vase holds only
 white lilies4 ,there is iris growing   
among the roses in  ,jan van ,eyck's    
#8,virgin of the ,fountain1'#ch but in  
his ,annunciations  there is only the   
white lily4 ,memling1 however1 places an
 iris half  hidden below the lilies in  
one ,annunciation1#ci while in a        
#8,madonna  with the ,child'#dj there is
 also a single iris1 though in this case
  the iris rises above the lilies4      
,the ,master of ,flmalle in his fine    
#8,saint ,barbara'#da places an iris  in
 a vase beside the saint1 where the     
white lily of a virgin martyr  might    
have been expected4    ,the symbolism of
 the iris and the lily at first sight   
appears to be  identical1 and the       
substitution of the iris for the lilium 
seems  to be the result of some         
confusion between #8lys' and            
#8fleur-de-lys1'  accentuated by the    
likeness between the iris and the lilies
 of the  ,french royal standard with    
which the people of the ,netherlands    

were  familiar1 since they were         
emblazoned on the shield of the ,dukes  
of  ,burgundy4    ,in the mosaics of    
,ravenna1 where the lily is used to     
indicate the  delights of ,heaven1 it is
 drawn in silhouette1 showing three     
petals1  and very closely resembles the 
#8fleur-de-lys' of heraldry4 ,the same  
convention born of the extreme          
difficulty of giving modelled form in   
utter whiteness1 particularly in a      
medium unfitted to express fine         
gradations of shade1 is found in woven  
work1 tooled leather1 and  embroidery1  
and the common likeness of the          
imperfectly-rendered lilium  candidum   
and the iris to the sacred lily of the  
,french and ,english  royal standards1  
is sufficient to account for any        
indecision as to  which was precisely   
the ,virgin's lily4 ,it is conceivable1 
too1 that  the artists of the           
,netherlands1 when they painted a       
,madonna for their  churches1 set her in
 the midst of the iris which grew so    

thickly round  their doors rather than  
limit her patronage to the white lily1  
which  was still exotic and confined to 
some few convent gardens4 ,for the iris 
made their ,lady more entirely their    
own--and so she would appeal more       
strongly to the emotions of the simple4 
,but in the ,netherlands1 in the        
fifteenth century1 symbolism was usually
  very precise1 and there does seem to  
be a slight difference in the  use of   
the two lilies4 ,the lilium candidum is 
used exclusively  as the symbol of      
virginal purity1 more particularly in   
relation to  the fact that the ,virgin  
,mary was a mother1 but the iris1 the   
royal  lily1 appears to be the emblem or
 attribute of the incarnate ,godhead4   
,though ,saint ,bernard of ,clairvaux   
had attributed the metaphor1 #8,i am    
444 the lily of the valleys1' to the    
,virgin1 ,origen1 the older and1  in the
 ,north1 weightier authority1 held      
,christ to be the lily4 ,in  the        
#8,adoration of the ,shepherds'#db of   

,hugo van der ,goes1 where the          
symbolism all refers to the ,child1     
there is no white lily1 but the  orange 
lily and the purple and white iris4 ,in 
the ,annunciation of  ,memling1 the     
single iris below the lilies may be the 
emblem of the  ,prince of ,david's house
 who was to be born of virginal         
innocence--and  it may have the same    
meaning where it rises above the lilies 
in the  picture where the royal ,child  
sits upon ,his mother's knee4 ,it may   
also  indicate royal birth in the       
#8,saint ,barbara' of the ,prado4 ,she  
was  the daughter of a ,king1 but in    
this painting has no crown or other     
attribute of royalty4 ,it is noticeable1
 too1 that had there been a  white lily 
in the vase it would have been difficult
 to distinguish  this ,saint ,barbara   
from a figure of the ,virgin4    ,the   
idea of royalty in connection with the  
iris received support from  the constant
 recurrence of the #8fleur-de-lys1'     
accepted as an iris  7though some       

contend that the form1 as a symbol of   
royalty1 came  originally from ,egypt   
and was founded on the lotus71 on royal 
crowns  and sceptres4 ,memling and his  
school used such crowns as the symbol of
  divine majesty1 placing them upon the 
heads of ,god the ,father1#dc of  ,god  
the ,son1#dd and also on the head of the
 ,virgin ,mary4#de    ,dante also       
appears to use the #8fleur-de-lys' or   
#8fiordaliso' as a  symbol of honour3   
#8444 ,beneath the sky      ,so         
beautiful1 came four-and-twenty elders  
7signori7      ,by two and two1 with    
flower-de-luces crown'd4'#df    ,some   
commentators1 taking the four-and-twenty
 personages as the  four-and-twenty     
canonical books of the ,old ,testament1 
consider the  crowns of flowers to be   
symbolical of the purity of the doctrine
 found  within the books1 holding a     
#8fiordaliso' to equal the white lily as
 a  symbol1 but it is possible that the 
poet meant the formal fleur-de-lys  upon
 a golden crown or the fresh iris blooms

 which would also form a  crown of      
honour4    ,the iris is sometimes used  
symbolically in ,italy1 and there is in 
the  ,church of ,s4 ,spirito in         
,florence an #8,annunciation' now       
usually ascribed  to ,pesello4 ,between 
,mary and the angel stands a vase from  
which spring  three purple iris4 ,this  
vase1 on either side of which the       
figures  bend1 is not merely a variation
 of the vase of white lilies indicating 
the virginity of ,mary which is seen in 
so many early ,annunciations1  but it is
 the same symbol developed and enriched1
 till it represents  the dogma of the   
immaculate birth of ,christ4 ,the vase1 
in many cases  transparent1 typifies    
,mary1 and the upspringing flower is the
 emblem of  the incarnate ,godhead4#dg  
,ghirlandaio places the iris1 violet and
 daisy1 each growing up strongly  and   
freshly from the bare ground of the     
stableyard1 in his #8,adoration  of the 
,shepherds1'#dh and in a picture of the 
sixteenth century by  ,palmezzano of    

,forl1#di the ,child1 seated on ,his    
,mother's knee1 holds  a stem of iris as
 a sceptre2 but1 on the whole1 the iris 
was little  painted in ,italy4    ,in   
art which is purely ,german the iris is 
very rarely used1 though  ,albert ,drer 
painted a #8,madonna of the             
,sword-lily1'#ej but in ,spain  it holds
 an important place4 ,spanish art is    
poor in symbolism1  though it recognized
 early and prized highly the white      
lilies of  the ,annunciation4 ,except1  
perhaps1 for the flame-tipped dart of   
divine love1 there seems to be no symbol
 of truly ,spanish origin1  and those   
used by ,spanish artists were mostly    
taken from the art of  the ,netherlands4
 ,flemish art was profoundly admired in 
,spain1 and  the ,spanish were well     
acquainted with it1 for there was       
naturally  much intercourse between the 
two countries in the days before the    
,netherlands established their          
independence4 ,also ,jan van ,eyck      
visited  ,portugal and ,spain in the    

train of his patron1 ,philip the ,good  
of  ,burgundy1 and from the             
,hispano-,mauresque types in some of the
 later  work of the ,master of ,flmalle 
there is reason to think that he1 too1  
had been in the peninsula4    ,the      
symbol of the ,flemish painters which   
particularly appealed to the  ,spanish  
was the iris1 which grew small and wild 
upon their own hills1  and with a freer1
 heavier growth in the palace gardens1  
whose admirable  water-works had been   
planned and executed by the despised    
,moors4 ,they  adopted the iris as the  
royal lily of the ,virgin1 the attribute
 of the  ,queen of ,heaven1 as the      
lilium candidum was the attribute of the
 ,maid  of ,nazareth4 ,the iris1        
therefore1 was deemed particularly      
suitable as  a detail in that most      
favourite ,spanish devotional           
representation of  the ,virgin1 an      
#8,immaculate ,conception4' ,the        
,virgin1 represented as the  woman      
#8clothed with the sun and the moon     

beneath her feet1' is usually  attended 
by child angels who carry roses1 lilies1
 palm and olive4 ,the  purple iris is   
generally added1 and sometimes the white
 lily is omitted  and the iris only     
given4 ,the ,spaniards1 therefore1      
attached the same  idea of royalty to   
the iris as did the ,flemings1 but      
transferred the  attributes from the    
royal ,son to the crowned ,mother1 for  
in ,spain it is  not found as the       
attribute or the emblem of the ,infant  
,christ4    ,later1 the whole ,catholic 
,church seems to have accepted both the 
iris  and the lily1 and the mosaic      
altar-frontals of ,st ,peter's in ,rome 
bear  a design in which the rose1 the   
lily and the iris are united4           
,v    ,,the ,,rose      ,roses1 among   
the ,romans1 were the symbol of victory1
 of triumphant  love1 of the pride and  
pomp of life1 and were by long          
association as  pagan as the lily is    
sacred4 ,the ,madonna lily 7lilium      
candidum7 was  the flower of the ,virgin

 and of the virgin saints2 the rose was 
the  flower of ,venus4       #8,and on  
hire hed1 full semmly for to see      ,a
 rose gerlond fressh and wel            
smelling4'#ea    ,in the #8,triumph of  
,venus1' by ,cosimo ,tura1#eb the       
goddess1 who is in  truth a             
modest-looking lady1 fully draped and   
firmly girdled1 wears  a crown of roses1
 red and white4 ,beneath her            
cockle-shell is another  picture1#ec the
 sea is #8sucking in one by one the     
falling roses1 each  severe in outline1 
plucked off short at the stalk1 but     
embrowned a  little as ,botticelli's    
roses always are4'#ed    ,but the       
,church grudged ,venus the flower4      
,roses1 said ,wilfred ,strabo1  were the
 flower of martyrdom4 #8,ros martyres1  
rubore sanguinis1'  wrote ,saint        
,melitus1 ,bishop of ,sardes1 in the    
second century1 and  ,saint ,bernard of 
,clairvaux found the rose to be a       
fitting symbol of  the ,passion of our  
,lord4 ,but though the rose was red to  

the colour of  blood1 and fenced around 
with cruellest thorns1 it had been so   
long  associated with the joys of life  
that the world refused to recognize  it 
as the flower of death4 ,only as the    
sign of the triumphant entry of  the    
departed soul to ,heaven was the symbol 
acceptable4 ,roses sprang  from the     
blood of those who fell for their faith 
at ,roncevaux 7as  indeed they sprang   
from the spilt blood of ,adonis71 but   
they were also  the sign of victory over
 the pagan1 and when the ,virgin ,mary  
was laid  within her tomb it was in     
rejoicing that #8straightway there      
surrounded  her flowers of roses which  
are the blessed company of martyrs4'#ee 
,but the ,church1 always wise in matters
 sthetic1 did not insist upon  the      
tragic significance of the rose4 ,it was
 allowed to be still the  symbol of     
love1 but of divine love1 and it is as  
the symbol of the love  of ,god that it 
now decorates our churches in carvings  
of wood or stone1  in the silver work of

 church ornaments and on embroidered    
vestments and  altar frontals4    ,the  
rose has never been especially          
associated with the person of  ,christ4 
,origen1 who held that the text which we
 render1 #8,i am the rose  of ,sharon1' 
was a self-description of our ,lord1    
read the verse1 #8,i am  the flower of  
the field1' so giving the ,church no    
clear image4 ,when in  art an emblem was
 required to represent our ,lord1 the   
ancient catacomb  devices of the lamb   
and the vine were employed4 ,any        
reference to ,him  under the metaphor of
 a flower was rare and usually vague1 as
 the  charming #8gold flower' of the    
,blickling ,homilies4 #8,then the ,queen
 of  all the maidens gave birth to the  
true ,creator and ,consoler of mankind1 
when the gold-flower came unto this     
world and received a human body  from   
,s4 ,mary1 the spotless ,virgin4'    ,or
 again as a fruit rising from the       
mystical rose3       #8,now spring up   
flouris fra the rute      ,revert you   

upward naturally      ,in honour of the 
blissit frute      ,that raiss up fro   
the rose ,mary4'#ef    ,there are some  
medival ,latin hymns for the ,nativity  
in which ,christ is  referred to as the 
rose springing from the lily4 ,the      
simile1 however1  was by no means       
applied to ,him exclusively1 for in a   
,visitation hymn  of the same period ,he
 is alluded to as the lily hidden in the
 rose4  ,but though the rose is not     
often the emblem of ,jesus ,christ1 both
 in  literature and art it is used as   
the symbol of ,his love4    ,saint      
,mectilda1 in the discourse on the three
 perfumes of divine love1  tells us that
 #8the first of these perfumes is the   
rose-water distilled  in the still of   
charity from the most beautiful of all  
roses1 the heart  of our ,lord1'#eg and 
repeatedly in ecclesiastical art1 roses 
falling  or fallen from ,heaven1 signify
 divine love4 ,the lovely angels in     
,signorelli's #8,paradise'#eh carry     
roses in their looped draperies and     

scatter them down upon the redeemed     
souls beneath1 and in ,botticelli's     
#8,coronation of the ,virgin'#ei the air
 is also full of roses1 symbols  of the 
love of ,god4 ,and symbols of divine    
love are also the falling  roses in that
 vision of ,saint ,francis which was so 
often painted by  ,spanish artists and  
called by them #8,la ,portincula4'#fj   
,the saint1  kneeling in his cell one   
winter's night1 was much troubled by the
  memory of a fair woman4 ,to overcome  
the temptation he went out and  threw   
himself among the briars of the         
wilderness4 ,he was rewarded by a       
vision of the ,saviour1 seated in glory1
 with the ,virgin by ,his side1  and as 
a token that his penitences were        
accepted the thorns bloomed  with roses4
 ,in most renderings of the legend the  
mystical roses fall in  a shower around 
him1 and in ,murillo's fine picture#fa  
the putti are  energetically pelting the
 saint with blossoms4 ,it was a subject 
painted  con amore by the ,spaniards1   

for--,assumptions apart--the traditions 
of art in ,spain were distinctly gloomy 
and they seized where they could  an    
excuse for colour4 ,even ,zurburan      
succumbed to the roses4#fb    ,the roses
 which strew the floor of ,heaven in a  
famous diptych#fc by  an unknown        
,english painter are also symbols of    
divine love4 ,the panels  show ,richard 
,,ii1 who is presented to the ,virgin by
 ,saint ,john the  ,baptist1 ,saint     
,edmund and ,saint ,edward the          
,confessor4 ,the roses round  the       
,virgin's feet are pink and yellow1 and 
heavier1 handsomer flowers  than those  
which are found in ,italian pictures of 
the same period4 ,for  the rest1 this   
,heaven is especially remarkable for the
 politeness of  the blue-winged1        
blue-robed angels1 who each1 in         
compliment to their  royal visitor1 wear
 his badge--a white hart couchant1      
collared and  chained or--upon the      
shoulder4    ,red roses1 said ,saint    
,bernard1 were symbolical of the        

,passion of our  ,lord1 but neither in  
,church observances nor in art have they
 been  generally adopted with that      
meaning4 ,there is1 however1 a picture  
of  the ,christ-,child in ,cadiz4 ,he   
holds the crown of thorns1 and at ,his  
feet are the globe and the apple4 ,all  
around1 filling the background1  are    
blood-red roses1 symbol of the ,passion 
which was to come4    ,this forecast of 
pain in the ,spanish renderings of the  
,saviour's  infancy is even more marked 
in a picture by ,zurburan1#fd where in  
play  ,he plaits a crown of rose thorns1
 the flowers lying beside ,him and at   
,his feet4    ,divine love and divine   
passion1 intermingled1 may be what the  
roses  indicate in many #8,adorations'  
of great beauty where the scene is laid 
in a rose-garden4 ,in the #8,adoration' 
of ,neri di ,bicci#fe the ,holy  ,child 
lies surrounded by lilies and red and   
pale roses4 ,the lilies  signify ,his   
sinlessness and the roses apparently    
,his love and passion4  ,the little     

,saint ,john stands behind with a scroll
 on which is inscribed  #8,,ecce ,,agnus
 ,,dei4'    ,there is a lovely          
picture#ff now ascribed to ,botticini1  
where  angels playfully sprinkle rose   
petals over the ,infant ,christ in a    
rose-trellised garden4 #8,they worship  
here always alone1 though there  is no  
gate to the garden2 the angels have     
relinquished high ,heaven for  these    
delights2 for the scent of these roses  
which they pluck1 and the  ,child has   
relinquished ,heaven for these roses1   
and the thorns which  he shall gather   
from them 444 the season of their thorns
 is never  over1 and whilst it is the   
time of roses in this picture1 there is 
the  forecast of their thorns in it4'#fg
    ,in the ,speculum ,human            
,salvationis1 a ,,ms4 of the fourteenth 
century1#fh the ,holy ,dove is depicted 
upon a rose4 ,from the bosom of a       
seated figure1 which represents ,david  
or ,jesse1 a rose tree issues4 ,at  the 
summit of the tree there is a           

five-petalled rose1 in the centre of    
which1 as in a nest1 sits a dove1 which 
represents the ,holy ,ghost4    ,the    
design is founded upon the text of      
,isaiah which has been  paraphrased by  
,pope3       #8,from ,jesse's root      
behold a branch arise1      ,whose      
sacred flower with fragrance fills the  
skies2      ,th' therial ,spirit o'er   
its leaves shall move      ,and on its  
top descends the sacred ,dove4'    ,the 
rose represents ,christ1 the perfect    
flower of the human race1  sprung from  
the root of ,jesse1 and the dove        
descends upon it as the  ,holy ,ghost   
descended upon our ,lord at ,his baptism
 in ,jordan4    ,saint ,bernard1        
differing from ,origen1 identified the  
,virgin ,mary with  the flower of the   
field and also with the abstraction     
described as  #8,wisdom' in             
,ecclesiasticus1 #8exalted like a palm  
tree in ,engeddi and as  a rose plant in
 ,jericho4'                             
#8,rosa ,mystica1 ora pro nobis6'       

prays the ,church4                      
#8,here is the ,rose      ,wherein the  
,word ,divine was made ,incarnate1'     
wrote ,dante4    ,an ,english hymn      
composed about the year #acjj has the   
lines3       #8,lavedy 7,lady71 flower  
of alle thing        ,rosa sine spina   
,thu bere ,jhesu1 hevene king           
,gratia devina4'    ,and nearly two     
centuries later ,william ,dunbar wrote3 
#8,hevins distil your balmy showris3    
,for now is risen the bricht day-stir   
,fro the rose ,mary1 flour of flowris4' 
,therefore1 in the decoration of        
churches dedicated to the ,madonna1  the
 rose frequently occurs4 ,it does not   
supersede the lily1 which  was the      
flower especially consecrated to her1   
but it is found beside  it4 ,the ,church
 of ,s4 ,maria ,maggiore in ,rome is    
ornamented along the  aisles1 above the 
side chapels1 with a series of panels1  
gold on white1  which show the floral   
emblems of the ,virgin4 ,the rose1 the  
lily1 the  olive1 the laurel and the    

vine alternate down the whole length of 
the  church4 ,the beautiful little      
chapel behind the shrine of the         
,santissima  ,annunziata1 in the ,church
 of the ,annunziata in ,florence1 was   
decorated  in the seventeenth century   
with inlaid and raised pietra-dura work4
  ,each of the five onyx panels which   
form the walls has upon it an emblem  of
 the ,virgin--the sun1 the moon1 the    
,stella maris1 the lily1 and1  most     
lovely of them all1 the branch of roses 
below the words #8,rosa  ,mystica4'     
,this rose is red1 and1 strangely       
enough1 the red rose1 rather  than the  
white1 was chosen to represent the      
,virgin4 ,wrote ,guido ,orlandi  in     
#abib3       #8,if thou hadst said1 my  
friend1 of ,mary1      ,loving and full 
of grace2      ,thou art a red rose     
planted in the garden2      ,thou       
wouldst have written fittingly4'    ,in 
the ,sarum ,book of ,hours1 by ,philippe
 ,pigouchet1#fi published in  #aeja1 the
 huge rose held by the ,virgin          

definitely illustrates her title  of    
#8,rosa ,mystica1' but those pictures of
 the early ,florentine school1  in which
 she holds a small red or white rose1   
show her as the #8,madonna  del ,fiore1'
 for as #8,our ,lady of the ,flower' she
 had been installed  patroness of the   
city of ,florence4 ,it would have seemed
 natural1 since  the lily was upon the  
shield of ,florence1 to have placed a   
lily1 her  own flower1 in the ,madonna's
 hand4 ,but the city of ,florence had   
passed  through troubled times just     
before the revival of her art1 and the  
silver lily on her shield had been      
replaced by one of crimson4             
#8,had through dissension been with     
vermeil dyed4'#gj    ,rather than paint 
her with the crimson lily1 ,florentine  
artists gave  her the rose1 and she     
holds a white leafless rose in the      
dainty little  picture by ,fra ,angelico
 which is now in the ,vatican4#ga       
,there was an odd fancy about the       
beginning of the eighteenth century  to 

represent the ,virgin ,mary as ,la      
,divina ,pastora feeding her sheep  with
 roses4 ,the original picture with this 
title was by ,alfonso  da ,tobar4#gb ,he
 found imitators both in ,spain and     
,france1 and in  ,southern ,spain the   
popularity of the subject still         
persists4 ,there is  a plastic group1   
nearly life-size1 in the ,church of ,s4 
,catalina in  ,cadiz4 ,the ,virgin is   
dressed  la ,watteau with a beribboned  
crook  and a rose-wreathed hat4 ,she    
feeds with roses and lilies the sheep   
and  lambs gambolling round her knees2  
an almond tree flowers above1 and  the  
,christ-,child1 dressed as a small      
shepherd boy1 stands in front4  ,it is  
all pink and white1 gay and dainty1 in a
 corner of the austere  whitewashed     
convent chapel which has ,murillo's     
beautiful #8,marriage of  ,saint        
,catharine' above the altar4 ,a similar 
group1 but more dignified  in type and  
less frivolous in detail1 is in the     
,church of the ,holy  ,trinity at       

,cordova4 ,they are strange artificial  
flowers of that gloomy  growth1 ,spanish
 ,art4          ,,vi    ,,the           
,,carnation      ,in early ,german      
devotional poems the nelken1 the pink1  
carnation or  gillyflower1 is           
occasionally used as the simile of the  
,virgin4 ,conrad  von ,wrtzburg writes3 
#8,thou art a fragrant gillyflower      
sprig4'    ,but it has been given no    
definite and individual status as a     
symbol4    ,very frequently1 however1 in
 ecclesiastical art1 more particularly  
that of ,venice and ,northern ,italy1 it
 is found where the rose might be       
expected4 ,it is placed with the lily in
 a vase beside the ,virgin1 with  the   
violet before the ,infant ,christ1 and  
with the wild strawberries  among the   
grass of ,paradise4    ,in ,germany the 
carnation is seen falling from above    
with heavenly  roses1 and occasionally1 
even1 in spite of the written legend1 it
  replaces the roses in ,saint          
,dorothea's wreath4    ,it would appear1

 therefore1 that the symbolism of the   
carnation is  identical with that of the
 rose1 and when1 for any reason1 the    
artist  did not care to paint the rose1 
he substituted the carnation4    ,each  
year thousands of carnation blossoms are
 brought to the ,lateran  ,church in    
,rome on the feast-day of ,saint ,john1 
and the people bring  carnations1 not   
roses1 because by midsummer's day the   
blooming time of  ,roman roses is almost
 past4 ,a scarcity of roses would seem  
one reason  at least in the ,venetian   
pictures of the fifteenth century why   
the  carnation replaces the rose4       
,earth1 even sufficient to grow a rose  
bush1 was scarce in the sea-washed city1
 but carnations then1 as now1  must have
 grown in pots on every balcony4 ,so the
 ,venetians painted  their own familiar 
flower rather than draw the rose1 as    
,carpaccio did  his camels1 from        
descriptions furnished by observant     
travellers4    ,in the ,netherlands and 
,germany artists probably preferred the 

carnation to the rose4 ,it is more      
precise in shape1 neater in its  habit  
of growth1 richer in colour than the    
rose1 and therefore  more in the spirit 
of ,northern art1 which liked to express
 definite  and closely-reasoned         
symbolism with distinct bright colours  
and  sharply-realized form4 ,in the     
,south1 the artists1 more concerned with
  the depicting of the soul than with   
the outer shell of things1 more         
poetical and also more vague and less   
accurate in their symbolism1 were       
better pleased with the more elusive    
charms of the loosely-petalled  rose4   
,in an #8,adoration' by ,botticelli#gc  
the ,holy ,child lies among violets1    
daisies and wild strawberries1 and the  
background is filled with               
freely-growing roses1 drawn apparently  
from memory1 not life4 ,the roses       
signify the divine love which impelled  
the ,saviour of the world to be  born as
 a human ,child4 ,in the same subject by
 ,hugo van der ,goes#gd  three          

carefully-painted carnations are placed 
in a crystal vase1 and  are symbols of  
the divine love of the ,holy ,trinity by
 which ,god the  ,son became incarnate1 
the crystal vase in ,northern art       
typifying the  ,immaculate ,conception4 
,but in the ,sienese and ,florentine    
schools also the carnation is  sometimes
 found1 and very rarely in the same     
picture as the rose4#ge  ,therefore it  
would seem conclusive that when the     
painter of the ,church  did not care to 
use the rose because1 probably1 of its  
association  with ,venus and scenes     
profane1 he was free1 if he chose1 to   
use the  carnation as its substitute4   
,strangely enough1 the most famous      
carnations in the history of art1  those
 two which have given the name of #8,the
 ,master with the ,carnations'  to the  
anonymous ,swiss painter of the         
fifteenth century1 seem to have  no     
symbolical significance4 ,the picture#gf
 shows ,saint ,john the  ,baptist       
preaching to ,king ,herod from the text3

 #8,it is not lawful for  thee to have  
thy brother's wife4' ,the ,king is in   
his chair of state  and the ladies of   
his court are seated upon cushions on   
the tesselated  pavement before the     
pulpit4 ,directly below the pulpit lie  
the two  pinks2 one is white and one    
red4 ,possibly1 since roses1 according  
to  ,saint ,melitus1#gg ,walafrid       
,strabo#gh and ,saint ,mectilda1#gi are 
the symbols of martyrdom1 the carnation 
may foreshadow the approaching  death of
 the preacher1 but they are more        
probably simply a detail to  give       
verisimilitude to the composition1 as is
 the dog that worries a  bone in the    
#8,dance of ,salome' by the same master4
          ,,vii    ,,garlands ,,of      
,,roses      #8,let us crown ourselves  
with rose-buds1'#hj cried the revellers 
in the  ,book of ,wisdom1 and at ,roman 
feasts host and guests alike wore roses 
on  their hair or in garlands round     
their necks4    ,so in the heavenly     
mansions1 where life is a perpetual     

feast1 unfading  roses crown the elect4 
,wreaths of roses are the symbol of     
heavenly joy  and are worn alike by     
angels and by the human souls who have  
entered  bliss4    ,an early ,christian 
prisoner dreamt that he was already in  
,heaven3    #8,towards us ran one of the
 twin children who1 three days before1  
had been decapitated with their mother4 
,a wreath of vermilion roses  encircled 
his neck and in his right hand he held a
 green and fresh  palm4'#ha    ,beneath 
,byzantine influence the rosy wreaths   
turned to crowns of  jewels1 and in the 
period between ,constantine and         
,justinian crowns  were considered      
strictly necessary for the guests at the
 heavenly  feasts4 ,but when the ,king  
of ,heaven ,himself was present all     
reverently  uncrowned1 and it is with   
their crowns in their hands that the    
twelve  apostles stand1 and the         
four-and-twenty elders in the mosaics of
 ,rome  and ,ravenna4 ,in the           
,neapolitan mosaics in the ,chapel of   

,santa ,restituta  eight figures1       
apparently of martyrs1 hold large crowns
 resembling  a victor's wreath1 and the 
graceful virgin saints on the wall of   
,s4  ,apollinare ,nuova each carries her
 wreath4    ,the tall1 grand angels of  
the mosaics have neither wreaths nor    
garlands4 ,they have gained no crown    
because no strife has ever troubled     
their serenity4 ,they stand tall and    
straight1 haloed1 with spear-like  wands
 in their hands4    ,after the twelfth  
century1 however1 the apostles and      
martyrs no longer  carry the crown of   
victory1 but it is the angels who wear  
wreaths1  usually wreaths of roses1     
which are the symbol of heavenly joy4   
,and1  alas6 what a lowering in type    
there was from the grand1 dignified     
beings who guard the throne of ,mary1 on
 the wall of ,s4 ,apollinare  ,nuova1 to
 the childish1 peeping1 rose-crowned    
little attendants which  crowd behind   
her chair in pictures of the ,sienese1  
,umbrian and early  ,florentine schools4

 ,the archangels still keep some        
dignity1 but the  sweet little doll-like
 creatures1 rose-crowned and            
golden-winged1 of  ,fra ,angelico seem  
an inadequate representation of the     
hosts of ,heaven4    ,but a magnificent 
strong-limbed angel of the ,byzantine   
type would have  overshadowed the       
slight1 transparent-fleshed ,madonna    
whose physique  showed traces of the    
asceticism which went towards the making
 of a  saint4 ,so the angels1 denied    
grand and vigorous frames1 were decked  
with dainty robes and crowns of roses4  
,paul ,bourget writes3      #8,ce double
 et contradictoire ,idal1 celui d'une   
extase monastique    conquise dans le   
martyre des sens et celui d'une beaut   
qui parle    au sens1 semble avoir      
co-exist dans le ,prugin et dans les    
peintres qui l'ont prcd ou accompagn1   
particulirement dans    ,benedetto      
,bonfigli1 dans ,eusebio da ,san        
,giorgio1 dans ,giannicola    ,manni et 
quelques autres dont la ,pinacothque de 

,prouse enferme    les uvres4 ,ce rve   
complexe a son symbole dans les anges de
    ,bonfigli1 couronns de roses1 comme 
les impies dont parle    l',ecriture    
8,couronnons-nous de roses avant        
qu'elles ne soient    fltries10 comme   
les convives aussi des banquets paiens  
8,respirons    les roses tant qu'elles  
ressemblent  tes joues4 ,embrassons tes 
joues tant qu'elles ressemblent  tes    
roses40 ,mais ces pauvres    anges aux  
cheveux fleuris tiennent dans leurs     
mains les instruments    de la ,passion 
du ,sauveur1 et une piti douloureuse    
noie de rouge    leurs douces prunelles 
o roulent de grosses larmes4'#hb    ,but
 blissful souls as well as angels wear  
roses4 ,in the ,paradise of  ,simone    
,martini1#hc ,saint ,peter with his key 
has opened the gate of  ,heaven and two 
angels standing by crown with roses each
 soul as it  enters4    ,and more       
particularly those souls are crowned who
 in their earthly  life could rejoice in
 their faith even when overwhelmed with 

troubles4  ,symbol of holy joy is the   
crown of roses which ,saint ,cecilia    
wears4 ,her  legend1 like other legends 
of the ,early ,church1 is both more     
poetic and  more allegorical than those 
which originated in later times4        
,saint ,cecilia lived in virginity with 
her husband ,valerian1 who1  through    
love of her1 became a ,christian and was
 baptized4    #8,and returning home he  
found ,cecilia in her chamber conversing
 with a  glittering angel 444 and he    
held in his hand two crowns of roses and
  lilies1 and he gave one of them to    
,cecilia and the other to ,valerian4    
#8,and on the morrow1 when ,tibertius   
came to salute his sister-in-law        
,cecilia1 he perceived an excellent     
odour of lilies and roses1 and asked    
her1 wondering1 whence she had untimely 
roses in the winter season4'  7,that is1
 whence came her holy joy during the    
season of persecution47  #8,and         
,valerian answered that ,god had sent   
them crowns of roses and  lilies but    

that he could not see them till his eyes
 were opened and his  body purified' 7by
 baptism74    ,then follows the account 
of the conversion of ,tibertius and the 
deaths  of all three martyrs4    ,the   
#8,second ,nonne' told the legend of the
 saint very prettily to the  ,canterbury
 pilgrims3       #8,thou with thy       
gerlond wrought of rose and lilie       
,thee1 mene ,i1 maid and martir ,seint  
,cecilie4'    ,and her story appears to 
have been popular1 though strangely     
enough she  has never ranked in         
popularity with ,saint ,margaret1 ,saint
 ,catharine  of ,alexandria1 or ,saint  
,barbara1 notwithstanding that her story
 is  certainly better authenticated than
 theirs1 the historical details of  her 
martyrdom having been proved beyond     
dispute4 ,but she is essentially  a     
,roman saint1 her body lying in         
,trastevere on practically the spot     
where she suffered martyrdom under      
,marcus ,aurelius1 and with the  strange
 jealousy of ,italian cities she was    

almost ignored by ,siena1  ,florence and
 ,venice till ,raphael1 ,roman in all   
his sympathies1 painted  the fine       
picture now in ,bologna4 ,in this       
picture1 where she appears as  the      
patroness of ,music1 she has no roses1  
but ,luini#hd dresses her  head         
charmingly with white roses and         
anemones4    ,more fortunate than ,saint
 ,cecilia1 ,saint ,dorothea is beloved  
in almost  all ,christian countries1 for
 coming from ,cappadocia there could be 
neither vauntings nor heart-burnings on 
her account in the ,christian  cities of
 ,europe4 ,she too wears the roses of   
her legend4    #8,send me then some     
roses from the ,paradise of your        
,christ1' scoffed  the noble youth1     
,theophilus1 as she passed to execution4
 ,at the moment  of death an angel      
appeared with three roses and three     
apples4 #8,take  them to ,theophilus1'  
said the saint1 and ,theophilus1        
believing1 died a  martyr4#he    ,saint 
,dorothea is usually painted with both  

apples and roses1 symbols  of the good  
works of a ,christian life and of the   
holy joy even in the  hour of death1    
which1 reported to ,theophilus1         
astonished and finally  converted him4  
,she is very popular both in the ,low   
,countries and in  ,germany4 ,there is a
 charming triptych at ,palermo1 the best
 picture  ,sicily possesses1 attributed 
usually to ,mabuse4 ,on one wing ,saint 
,dorothea is depicted seated on the     
ground with her lap full of red and     
white roses1 a quaint1 compact little   
figure1 not a slender ,italian  maiden1 
supported by angelic visions1 already   
half in ,heaven1 but of  the sturdy     
,flemish type1 who1 having with clear   
brain calculated the  cost1 sets herself
 with stoicism to endure the pain which 
would be  rewarded by the martyr's crown
 of unfading roses4    ,curiously       
enough1 the ,virgin's crown is usually  
of gold and precious  stones1 though in 
one of ,velasquez's rare religious      
pictures1 #8,the  ,coronation of the    

,virgin1'#hf ,god the ,father places    
upon her head a  wreath of red and white
 rose blooms4 ,in the best period of    
,italian art  the ,virgin wears no crown
 except at a #8,coronation1' when most  
often it  is of gold4 ,in ,germany the  
crowns are large and heavily jewelled1  
and  in the ,netherlands a jewelled     
fillet was very generally placed upon   
her  hair4 ,a notable and beautiful     
exception to these fillet-like coronets 
is the magnificent symbolical crown of  
jewels and fresh flowers which  she     
wears as ,queen of ,heaven in ,hubert   
van ,eyck's #8,adoration of the         
,lamb4'#hg ,it was only in late art1    
that is1 after the sixteenth  century1  
that representations of ,mary with the  
,child in her arms1 as  ,queen of       
,heaven1 or as #8,la ,purissima1' became
 common4 ,previously she  had been      
painted as a human mother with the      
sorrows of her motherhood  still upon   
her4 ,as the mother1 the greatest of    
whose seven sorrows has  not yet come1  

she would not yet carry the rose crown  
which symbolized  joy1 even though it   
were heavenly joy1 and by the time      
religious  sentiment demanded           
representations of ,christ's mother1    
risen to glory1  all sorrow past1 the   
,church had decided to depict her as the
 woman  #8clothed with the sun and upon 
her head a crown of twelve stars4'      
,akin to the wreaths of roses worn by   
angels and saints are the hedges  and   
rose-trellises of ,paradise4    ,dante  
pictures ,heaven as one great and       
marvellous rose-bloom3       #8,how wide
 the leaves      ,extended to the       
utmost1 of this rose2#hh      444444    
which in bright expansiveness      ,lays
 forth its gradual blooming1 redolent   
,of praises to the never wintering      
sun4'#hi    ,but the artists of the     
,church have usually depicted ,heaven   
not as  a rose but as a rose-garden2 and
 as a second and more perfect ,eden     
rather than as the ,holy ,city1 the     
stupendous piece of jeweller's work     

described in the ,revelation of ,saint  
,john4 ,a few ,flemish and ,german      
artists have attempted to realize the   
jasper wall1 the #8pure gold like  unto 
clear glass1' and the #8foundations     
garnished with all manner of  precious  
stones1' but for the majority of artists
 on both sides of the  ,alps ,heaven was
 a paradise1 a garden4 ,the prophet     
,esdras describes it  in detail3        
#8,twelve trees laden with divers       
fruits1    #8,and as many fountains     
flowing with milk and honey1 and seven  
mighty  mountains1 whereupon there grow 
roses and lilies4'#ij    ,the ,byzantine
 ,guide to ,painting#ia directs that    
,paradise be depicted  as #8surrounded  
by a wall of crystal and pure gold1     
adorned with trees  filled with bright  
birds1' so combining both visions of the
 home of the  blessed4    ,but ,western 
art usually paints ,heaven simply as a  
garden with twelve or  six fruit trees1 
little fertile mounts1 and grass thick  
with flowers1  among which lilies and   

roses predominate4    ,the celestial    
meadow of ,hubert van ,eyck#ib has      
grouped trees as in  a park and bushes  
covered with roses1 and there are roses 
on bushes  and trellises1 crowns of     
roses and roses woven into swinging     
garlands  in that most alluring of all  
painted paradises set by ,benozzo       
,gozzoli  upon the walls of the ,palazzo
 ,riccardi4#ic #8,roses and             
pomegranates1  their leaves drawn to the
 last rib and vein1 twine themselves in 
fair  and perfect order about delicate  
trellises2 broad stone-pines and tall   
cypresses overshadow them2 bright birds 
hover here and there in the  serene sky2
 and groups of angels glide and float   
through the glades of  an entangled     
forest4'#id    ,it is a paradise after  
the own heart of a ,medici1 in which no 
monotony1  no boredom need be           
apprehended1 full of gay and witty folk 
and the most  gorgeous angels that were 
ever seen4    ,the roses of ,paradise   
must not be confused with the rose hedge

  or trellis so often placed behind the 
,virgin by the early ,german  schools4  
,these hedges indicate the #8,hortus    
,conclusus' and identify  the ,virgin   
with the bride of the ,canticles by     
recalling the verse1 #8,a  garden       
enclosed is my sister1 my spouse4' ,this
 enclosure is sometimes  fenced merely  
by a row of flowers1 sometimes by a     
fortress-wall1 and  is often an         
elaborate garden4 ,an early instance by 
a master of the  ,middle ,rhine1#ie     
dating from about #adbj1 gives eighteen 
recognizable  species of flowers and ten
 varieties of birds4 ,the ,madonna sits 
reading  beneath a tree4 ,one saint     
gathers cherries and another draws water
  from a fountain4 ,saint ,george1      
,saint ,michael and a young man chat    
beneath a tree1 and a pretty young saint
 with flowers in her hair  teaches the  
little ,christ to play the psaltery4    
,other gardens contain  no flowers but  
the various objects used as similes of  
the ,virgin--the  ,tower of ,ivory1 the 

,closed ,door1 the ,sealed ,fountain1   
etc4 ,very often  there is merely a     
trellis with roses climbing up it1 and  
the flowers  which express the virtues  
of ,mary1 the lily1 violet and          
strawberry1  grow at her feet4 ,the     
thorns on the roses are carefully drawn1
 even  accentuated1 illustrating the    
verse1 #8,as a lily among thorns1 so is 
my  love among the daughters2'#if but in
 spite of the thorns the general        
significance of these roses also is joy 
and delight4    ,in the ,netherlands1   
where theologians occupied themselves   
less with  this second chapter of the   
,song of ,solomon1 ,madonnas set en     
plein air  are scarcely found4 ,the van 
,eycks and ,memling inaugurated the     
fashion  of arranging their devotional  
groups in chapel-like niches1 or in  the
 aisle of some large church4 ,any garden
 there is seen in glimpses  between     
pillars or through windows1 and has no  
mystical meaning4    ,illustration3     
,stefano da ,zevio      ,photo ,anderson

    ,,the #8,,enclosed ,,garden' ,,of   
,,the ,,virgin    7,royal ,museum1      
,verona7    ,in the work of ,botticelli 
and his school we again see enclosed    
gardens  of roses1 but these are rather 
gardens of adoration1 for in the centre 
the ,virgin kneels before the divine    
,infant4 ,as in all ,adorations the     
symbolism refers to the ,child1 and     
these roses symbolize the ,divine  ,love
 which sent ,him to this earth1 and are 
not the attributes of ,mary  or an      
indication of the joy in ,heaven4 ,a    
true hortus conclusus  of ,italian      
origin is that of ,stefano da ,zevio or 
da ,verona4#ig  ,the ,virgin1 with the  
,child upon her knee1 sits upon the     
ground in a  carefully walled in garden1
 of which the only other human occupant 
is  ,saint ,catharine1 who strings a    
crown of roses4 ,the garden is full of  
birds and bird-like angels1 and in one  
corner is the #8sealed fountain'  of the
 ,canticles4    ,as a general rule1     
roses massed together1 in garlands1 in  

baskets1 or  thickly growing1 are the   
symbols of heavenly joys1 and single    
roses  are the symbols of divine love4  
,but there is one single rose which is  
also the symbol of joy--it is the golden
 rose which is the gift of the  ,popes4 
,durandus writes3 #8,so also on the     
,sunday1 ,ltare ,jerusalem1 the  ,roman 
,pontiff beareth a mitre1 beautified    
with the orfrey1 on account  of the joy 
which the golden rose signifieth1 but on
 account of the time  being one of      
sadness1 he weareth black vestments4#ih 
#8,st ,leon is seen upon the chsse of   
,charlemagne#ii with the golden  rose in
 his right hand4 ,the golden rose being 
the image of ,heaven1  according to the 
,liturgy1 it became1 in the hands of the
 ,pope1 the  equivalent of a            
benediction4 ,one remarks that1 in the  
epoch of which  we speak1 the very      
poetical rite of the golden rose1 most  
ancient in  the ,church1 had just       
acquired a new celebrity4 ,the sending  
of the  symbolical flower had replaced1 

in the ,roman court1 that of the keys   
of confession1 and ,innocent ,,iii had  
just consecrated a discourse to  explain
 its mysterious signification4'#ajj     
,the sending of the golden rose was a   
very old custom1 dating at least  from  
the time of ,gregory the ,great4 ,the   
rose was solemnly blessed  by the ,pope 
on the fourth ,sunday in ,lent and sent 
by him to some  sovereign1 church or    
community4 ,urban ,v first made the     
ceremony annual  about #acff4    ,this  
rose1 symbol of the ,church's blessing1 
was often a thing of beauty  and fine   
workmanship4 ,stefano del ,cambio       
describes that one which was  sent in   
his time to ,florence4    #8,on ,easter 
,sunday morning1 the #bnd of ,april     
#adai1 ,pope ,martin ,v1  after having  
performed ,mass1 gave the golden rose to
 our magnificent  ,signoria1 in         
remembrance of the honours paid him by  
the ,florentine  people4444 ,our        
,signoria then returned to their palace 
with all the  court of ,cardinals and   

,prelates and the afore-said rose bush1 
which  was a golden branch with leaves  
of fine gold4 ,on it were nine roses1   
and a little bud on top of the nine1    
which contained spices1 myrrh and       
balsam4'#aja    ,sometimes the #8rose'  
was a whole rose bush about two feet    
high and  covered with leaves and       
flowers4 ,two such bushes1 one          
thornless1 the  gift of ,pope ,alexander
 ,,vii1 and the other1 with long sharp  
thorns1  though curved harmlessly       
downward1 presented by ,pius ,,ii1 are  
still  treasured by grateful ,siena4    
,,viii    ,,the ,,columbine      ,we    
read in ,isaiah3 #8,and there shall come
 forth a rod out of the stem of  ,jesse1
 and a ,branch shall grow out of his    
roots2 and the ,spirit of the  ,lord    
shall rest upon him1 the ,spirit of     
wisdom and understanding1 the  ,spirit  
of counsel and might1 the ,spirit of    
knowledge and the fear of  the          
,lord4'#ajb    #8,these words were      
addressed to the ,messiah4 ,the ,divine 

,child was  therefore clothed with the  
,spirit of ,god1 whose faculties are    
seven in  number1 for ,he possesses as  
,his peculiar gifts1 wisdom1            
understanding1  counsel1 strength1      
knowledge1 piety and fear4    #8,this   
subject has frequently been portrayed by
 ,christian artists4 ,a  tree springs   
from the bowels1 the breast or the mouth
 of ,jesse4 ,the  symbolic trunk spreads
 to the left and right1 throwing forth  
branches  bearing the ,kings of ,judah1 
the ancestors of ,christ2 at the top1   
seated on a throne1 or the chalice of a 
gigantic flower1 is the ,son of  ,god4  
,surrounding the ,saviour1 and forming  
as it were an oval aureole1  seven doves
 are ranged one above the other1 three  
on the left1 three  on the right1 and   
one at the top4444 ,these doves1 which  
are of snowy  whiteness1 like the ,holy 
,ghost1 and adorned like him with a     
cruciform  nimbus1 are simply living    
manifestations of the seven gifts of the
  ,spirit4 ,the ,holy ,ghost is drawn   

under the form of a dove2 each of  the  
seven energies distinguishing ,him is   
also figured under the same  type4'#ajc 
,these little doves surrounding the     
figure of ,christ1 as a man or as  an   
infant1 occur very frequently in the    
,french miniatures of the  thirteenth   
and fourteenth centuries1 and are found 
upon the windows in  the cathedrals of  
,s4 ,denis1 ,chartres1 ,amiens and      
,beauvais1 and in many  other ,french   
churches4    ,it was an essentially     
,french development of ,christian       
symbolism1  and it is in ,flemish art1  
which drew its inspiration from the     
,french  ,renaissance1 that we first    
find1 not the little white doves1 but   
the columbine flower4 ,the columbine    
grows wild in most countries of  ,europe
 and is usually dark blue in colour4    
,each of its five petals is  so shaped  
that it is really very like a little    
long-necked dove4 ,the  little doves are
 only five in number1 but the ,flemish  
painters take  each flower1 not each    

petal1 as the symbol1 and give seven    
blooms upon  each plant4 ,there are six1
 and the edge of the seventh is just    
showing1  in the mystical crown worn by 
,hubert van ,eyck's #8,queen of         
,heaven4'#ajd    ,strictly speaking1    
however1 ,mary has no right to these    
symbols of  the gifts of the ,spirit1   
for it was to the expected ,messiah that
 the  divine gifts were promised4 ,the  
columbine is more correctly used by     
,hugo van der ,goes1 who in his         
#8,adoration of the ,shepherds'#aje     
places  a columbine1 with seven flowers 
upon it1 in a vase before the ,infant   
,saviour4    ,the seven gifts of the    
,spirit are according to ,isaiah3       
,,sapientia                             
,,intellectus                           
,,consilium                             
,,fortitudo                             
,,scientia                              
,,pietas                                
,,timor4    ,and according to the       
,apocalypse3                            

,,virtus                                
,,divinitas 7in the ,vulgate7           
,,sapientia                             
,,fortitudo                             
,,honor                                 
,,gloria                                
,,benedicio4    ,but1 at the            
,renaissance1 ,faith1 ,hope and ,charity
 were taken as the  theological virtues1
 and to them were added the four moral  
virtues  exalted in pagan times above   
all others1 namely1 ,prudence1 ,justice1
  ,temperance and ,strength4#ajf    ,in 
a picture by ,jrg ,breu of the ,virgin  
with the ,child and two  saints1#ajg a  
vase of columbine1 the only flowers     
introduced1 is  placed in the foreground
 just below the ,child1 who stands on   
,his  ,mother's knee4    ,beside the    
vase is a sort of casket1 out of which  
seven little cupid  angels take seven   
scrolls4 ,on the respective scrolls are 
inscribed3  ,,fides1 ,,spes1 ,,charitas1
 ,,justicia1 ,,prudencia1 ,,fortes4 ,the
 seventh is  blank1 reserved1 perhaps1  

for ,,temperance4 ,a crowned saint1     
seated  beside the ,virgin1 holds upon  
her knee a scroll on which is written   
#8,,ave ,,regina1' and above the        
,virgin's head hover two putti with a   
heavy crown4 ,it is therefore to the    
,mother1 rather than to the ,child1     
that devotion is directed1 and the seven
 ,gifts are to be taken as her          
attribute4    ,in #adge the #8,adoration
 of the ,shepherds' by ,hugo van der    
,goes was  brought to ,florence by      
,tommaso ,portinari1 for the ,chapel of 
the  ,hospital of ,santa ,maria ,nuova4 
,its technique excited the greatest     
interest among the artists of ,italy1   
and the vase of columbine in the        
foreground may have first drawn their   
attention to this symbol4 ,cosimo       
,rosselli1 perhaps the last of the      
,florentine symbolists1 painted it      
among the daisies1 strawberries and     
jasmine-shaped flower in the  #8,madonna
 with the ,child and ,,ss4 ,peter and   
,james1'#ajh commissioned  in #adib4    

,after the fifteenth century it is      
fairly frequent in ,italian  art4 ,two  
of the most charming of the ,madonna    
pictures now in the ,brera1  #8,the     
,virgin and ,child with the ,lamb1' by  
,sodoma1 and #8,the ,virgin of the      
,rose-hedge1' by ,luini1 both introduce 
the columbine4 ,but the ,italian        
artists use it vaguely1 as the flower of
 the dove1 the flower in  some degree   
sacred to the ,holy ,ghost1 and lost    
sight of the original  connection with  
the seven ,gifts of the ,spirit4 ,luini1
 who is careless  with his symbolism1   
though painting flowers exquisitely1    
uses the  columbine also as an accessory
 in the famous portrait known as #8,la  
,colombina1'#aji but here1 of course1 it
 is simply a graceful flower in  the    
hand of a fine woman4    ,it is most    
unusual to find any flower used         
symbolically in scenes  representing the
 ,passion of our ,lord4 ,should plants  
or shrubs be there1  it is merely as an 
indication that the place of            

,crucifixion was beyond  the walls1 and 
that the place of burial was a garden4  
,they have no  special meanings as      
symbols4 ,an exception is the           
#8,entombment'#aaj of  ,hans ,schchlin  
of ,ulm4 ,from a rock in the foreground 
springs a plant  of columbine with three
 drooping flowers4 ,on a smaller plant  
at the  side are four more blossoms1    
making up the mystic seven4 ,there are  
only  these columbines and a little     
short grass4 ,on the step of the tomb   
lies  the crown of thorns which has     
fallen from the head of the dead        
,saviour  as the disciples lower ,his   
body to the grave4    ,the seven blooms 
of the columbine appear again in the    
,thomas-altar#aaa  by the master of the 
,bartholomew-altar1 who painted during  
the first  twenty years of the sixteenth
 century4 ,it is a disagreeable picture1
  the types poor and the action of the  
doubting ,thomas1 as he thrusts  his    
hand into the ,saviour's wound1         
distinctly brutal4 ,but all round  the  

feet of the risen ,saviour lie flowers  
scattered on the broad stone  step4     
,there are again the seven heads of the 
columbine1 snapped off  short and       
showing scarcely any stalk2 there are   
the violets of humility  and the daisy1 
often seen with the violet as the symbol
 of perfect  innocence in ,adorations of
 the ,infant ,christ1 but rare when ,he 
is  represented as a grown man4 ,there  
is also the strawberry flower but not   
the fruit4    ,after the sixteenth      
century the columbine seems to have     
dropped from  ,christian symbolism1 and 
in modern religious art it has no place4
          ,,ix    ,,the ,,olive         
#8,strew thrice nine olive boughs       
,on either hand2 and offer up thy       
prayer1'#aab    counselled the ,greeks  
when conscious that the deities were    
offended4    ,the olive was the gift of 
,pallas4 ,the tale ran that in the reign
 of  ,cecrops both ,poseidon and ,athena
 contended for the possession of        
,athens4 ,the gods resolved that        

whichever of them produced the gift     
most useful to mortals should have      
possession of the land4 ,poseidon       
struck the ground with his trident and  
straightway a horse appeared4  ,but     
,athena planted the olive and the gods  
thereupon decreed that the  olive was   
more useful to man than the horse1 and  
gave the city to the  goddess1 from whom
 it was called ,athen4#aac    ,but the  
symbolism of the olive1 founded upon its
 healing qualities and  its oil's       
well-known property of calming roughened
 water1 was not only  ,grecian3 it was  
wide-spread1 and the ,romans used it    
politically as well  as religiously4    
,their heralds carried olive on an      
embassy of peace1 and  the custom       
lingered in ,italy through the ,middle  
,ages2 ,dante describing  how the       
multitude #8,flock round the herald sent
 with olive branch4'    ,in ,christian  
art the olive also invariably represents
 peace or  reconciliation1 and it is    
first found in the ,catacombs1 where    

there  is a curious painting of the     
mystic fish which swims towards the     
,cross with a sprig of olive in its     
mouth4 ,the fish1 by the well-known     
anagram1 represents ,christ1 who1       
through the ,cross1 brings peace on     
earth4    ,a dove with an olive twig in 
its beak is also found upon early       
,christian tombs4 ,and then1 as         
,tertullian says1 #8it is a symbol of   
peace  even older than ,christianity    
itself'#aad--the herald of the peace of 
,god from the very beginning4 ,sometimes
 the word itself1 #8,pax1'#aae is       
added1 thereby marking the sense beyond 
all possibility of dispute2  viz41 that 
it is meant to assert of the soul of the
 deceased that it  has departed in the  
peace of ,god and of his ,church4#aaf   
,tertullian refers1 of course1 to the   
dove sent forth by ,noah which  returned
 across the waters1 and #8,lo6 in her   
mouth was an olive leaf  plucked off1'  
sign that the wrath of ,god was         
appeased4 ,the dove1  bearing the twig  

of olive1 executed in coloured marbles1 
occurs  repeatedly in the decoration of 
,saint ,peter's4 ,here the dove         
represents  the ,church bearing the     
,gospel message of peace to the world4  
,the same  emblem is found in the       
decoration of ,st ,john ,lateran1 and   
,pope ,innocent  ,x4 incorporated it    
with his coat of arms4    ,the olive    
naturally appears as an attribute in    
allegorical figures  of ,peace4 ,one of 
the earliest and most famous of these   
figures is in  ,ambrogio ,lorenzetti's  
great fresco entitled #8,good           
,government4'#aag ,the  golden-haired   
,peace1 who wears a white robe1 is      
crowned with olive1 and  carries an     
olive branch in her hand4 ,she has a    
beauty of her own1 but  compared with   
the more virile figures in the          
composition1 ,fortitude1  ,prudence1    
,temperance and ,justice1 she is a      
little heavy and inert1 a  little       
wanting in interest1 as the citizens    
perhaps would have found  their daily   

life were they condemned to days of     
peace4    ,in small1 fierce ,siena the  
olive was a very favourite symbol and   
found  more frequently than any other4  
,one of the most curious characteristics
  of religious art is the inexactitude  
with which it reflects a people's  mood1
 for the ideal upon the wall above the  
altar is often just  precisely that to  
which they do not strive4 ,when the     
,medici were in  power and ,florentine  
social life was at its worldliest1      
simplicity and  purity1 almost          
austerity1 were demanded of the artist1 
and the lily  was the favourite symbol4 
,murillo painted ,madonnas to the       
,church's  order1 sweet and forgiving1  
kind to indulgence1 almost voluptuous1  
at a  moment when not only the devotions
 of ,jews and heretics but the private  
life of every citizen of ,seville was   
under stern control4 ,and in  ,seville1 
with inquisitorial fires blazing1 the   
,virgin had as attribute  the rose of   
love and charity4 ,so the turbulent     

,sienese1 who1 when no  enemy knocked at
 the gates1 fought with one another1    
loved a still and  peaceful art4 ,it was
 conservative1 for they cared for no    
novelty1 no  variety of subject1 pose or
 action4 ,and their favourite symbol was
 the  olive branch of peace4 ,the angel 
,gabriel almost invariably carries      
olive1#aah ,saint ,john the             
,evangelist#aai and ,saint ,ansano1#abj 
their  own saint1 both hold branches of 
it1 and it crowns the blonde curls of   
many a little angel4    ,in             
representations of the first and third  
persons of the ,holy ,trinity  the olive
 branch is very rare4 ,upon some ancient
 crucifixes1 however1  where a hand     
holding a wreath represents the ,eternal
 ,father1 the  wreath1 though usually of
 laurel1 in some instances is formed of 
olive4 ,in the ,crucifix of the tenth   
century1 known as the ,crucifix of      
,lothair1#aba the wreath is distinctly  
of olive1 but since it encircles  the   
,holy ,dove the olive is perhaps equally

 the attribute of the ,holy  ,ghost4 ,in
 the ,crucifix upon the ,manual of      
,prayer of ,charles the  ,bald1#abb the 
wreath is of laurel and there is no     
dove4    ,mabillon speaks of a group of 
the ,trinity in human form1 sculptured  
by order of ,abelard at the ,paraclete4 
,in it the ,father wore a closed  crown1
 the ,son a crown of thorns1 and the    
,holy ,ghost a crown of olive4  ,the    
group has long since disappeared1 and   
there seems no other instance  of the   
,holy ,ghost in human form being        
represented with the olive4 ,a  dove    
bearing an olive twig could not be an   
emblem of the ,holy ,ghost  unless the  
bird's head were encircled with a halo4 
,but ,christian art uses the ancient    
symbol of peace repeatedly when         
illustrating ,christ's life upon earth4 
,first we find the angel ,gabriel       
bringing to the ,virgin a branch of     
olive as token that his message is  of  
peace4 ,sometimes he is also crowned    
with olive4 ,he comes crowned  with     

peace1 and the branch in his hand       
foreshadows the reconciliation  between 
,god and man which is to come by the    
,child whose advent he  announces4      
,the olive branch took precedence of the
 lily as the symbol carried by  the     
announcing angel4 ,originated probably  
by ,simone ,martini1 one of its         
earliest instances is in his            
,annunciation now in the ,uffizi4 ,in   
the  ,florentine school the simple stick
 carried by the herald angel evolved1   
as we have seen1 through the            
fleur-de-lys to the stem of lilies4 ,in 
,siena it was the meaning of the wand1  
rather than the wand itself1  which was 
developed4 ,the wand simply marked that 
,gabriel was a herald2  that it was a   
message of peace and goodwill which he  
brought was shown  by the grey-green    
leaves of the olive4 ,as a symbol it was
 by no means  of ,simone ,martini's own 
finding1 for it was a very usual        
political  symbol of the day1 but he    
seems to have been the first to have    

placed  it in the angel ,gabriel's hand1
 and the school of painting in ,siena   
whole-heartedly and faithfully adopted  
his device4 ,the general trend  of      
,sienese symbolism was to direct        
devotion to the incarnate ,godhead      
rather than to ,mary of ,nazareth1 and  
it is of ,him1 as the bringer of  peace 
on earth1 that the branch of olive      
tells1 as elsewhere the white  lily     
proclaims the virginity of the coming   
motherhood4    ,then again1 on that     
night when the angels sang of peace on  
earth and  goodwill towards men--       
444 #8the meek-eyed ,peace1      ,she   
crown'd with ,olive green1 came softly  
sliding      ,down through the turning  
sphear4'#abc    ,in one of the most nave
 and fascinating of all ,botticelli's   
pictures#abd the angels crowned with    
olive hold up branches of it  against   
the golden sky4 ,other angels1 half     
distraught with joy1 run  with waving   
olive-sprays to greet the astonished    
shepherds4    ,the same subject is much 

more soberly treated by ,sano di        
,pietro4#abe  ,one angel1 flying through
 the twilight1 brings a twig of olive to
 the  shepherd who is sleeping on the   
hillside4    ,there are many symbolical 
fruits placed in the hand of the ,infant
  ,christ4 ,botticelli paints a         
pomegranate1 ,mabuse a quince1 ,memling 
an  apple1 ,il ,moretto a pear1 and each
 represents the individual artist's     
conviction as to what really was the    
unnamed fruit of the ,tree of the       
,knowledge of ,good and ,evil which grew
 in the midst of ,eden4 ,the placing  of
 the olive1 symbol of reconciliation1   
where it might be confused  with the    
fatal fruit which made that             
reconciliation so imperative was        
carefully avoided1 and we rarely find   
the olive branch in the hand  of the    
,child when seated on ,his mother's     
knee4 ,and there was still  another     
reason4 ,he had ,himself said3 #8,i come
 not to bring peace upon  earth1 but the
 sword1' therefore the earlier and more 

literal artists  refused ,him the symbol
 of peace1 even as divine peace4 ,there 
are1  however1 instances of the         
,christ-,child with the olive branch1 of
 which  the most important is the       
#8,holy ,family' by ,mantegna4#abf ,the 
,christ1  a beautiful and dignified     
childish figure of three or four years  
old1  stands on a sort of pedestal with 
the little ,saint ,john4 ,he holds a    
branch of olive in ,his right hand1     
upright like a sceptre1 and in the      
other is the crystal orb which          
symbolizes sovereignty4 ,saint ,joseph  
stands behind and the ,virgin lays a    
rosebud at her ,son's feet4    ,the     
,bringer of ,divine ,peace was an aspect
 of the incarnate ,son of ,god  on which
 ,mantegna laid emphasis4 ,in the       
#8,holy ,family1' now in ,dresden1      
painted about the same period1 the      
little ,saint ,john holds a branch of   
olive 7from which two tiny side-sprays  
grow naturally in the form of a  cross7 
as an attribute of the ,holy ,child4    

,the olive branches of the #8,entry into
 ,jerusalem1' like the olives of        
,gethsemane1 were only accidentally     
allegorical4 ,the villagers of the      
,mount of ,olives cut down branches     
7presumably olive branches7 #8and       
strewed them in the way4' ,with palm    
branches they would salute any  popular 
leader1 and it is scarcely to be        
believed that they definitely  selected 
the olive and palm with the full        
understanding of the  symbolism which   
the ,christian ,church attaches to them4
    #8,the olive branches signify his   
office as peace-bringer and the palms   
his victory over ,satan4'#abg    ,there 
is in the ,catacombs a figure of the    
,virgin ,mary praying between  two olive
 trees4 ,her name is inscribed above her
 head4 ,she is standing  with raised    
hands in the early attitude of prayer1  
and these olive  trees apparently       
symbolize #8the peace of ,god which     
passeth all  understanding4' ,but after 
the twelfth century the ,church had     

identified  the personality of the      
,virgin with the figure of ,wisdom      
eulogized in  ,ecclesiasticus1 and the  
olives which are sometimes found beside 
her  refer to the verse which compares  
her to                 #8,a fair olive  
tree in a pleasant field4'#abh          
,botticelli painted a beautiful         
#8,madonna of the ,olives' for the      
,church  of ,s4 ,spirito4 ,vasari writes
 of it3 #8,in ,s4 ,spirito in ,florence 
he  has painted a picture for the       
,chapel of the ,bardi which is carefully
  executed and well finished1 where     
there are some olives and palms  painted
 with great love4'#abi ,in another      
picture by ,botticelli#acj  angels hold 
above the ,virgin's head a              
lightly-framed crown of gold  which is  
decorated with fresh sprays of lily1    
palm and olive4    ,the most popular of 
modern ,italian representations of the  
,virgin and  ,child is very justly that 
painted by ,niccol ,barabino#aca and    
entitled  #8,quasi ,oliva ,speciosa in  

,campis4' ,large branches of olive1     
painted  also #8with great love1' are   
placed about the feet of the sweet-faced
  ,mother1 who peeps through her heavy  
white veil1 and they almost hide  the   
fruit of temptation which lies on the   
ground beneath4    ,illustration3       
,martin ,schngauer    ,,gabriel         
,,crowned ,,with ,,olive ,,brings ,,the 
,,message ,,of ,,reconciliation         
7,print ,room1 ,alte ,pinakothek1       
,munich7    ,one of the putti which fly 
round the feet of the ,madonna in a     
,spanish  #8,immaculate ,conception'    
usually carries a branch of olive1 and  
that1  too1 bears the same meaning4 ,as 
an olive tree in a pleasant field she   
brings peace and consolation to mankind4
 ,she is the #8,mater ,consolatrix4'    
,sodoma painted a stately figure of     
,saint ,victor1#acb with sword and      
palm1 and the little rose-crowned       
child-angel who supports his shield     
holds above it a branch of olive1 symbol
 of the peace which to a  ,christian    

warrior should be the end of victory4   
,the same idea dominates the            
#8,judith'#acc of ,botticelli4 ,the     
slayer  of her country's enemy returns  
thoughtfully home1 satisfied but not    
exultant4 ,in her right hand is her     
sword1 carried low2 upright1 in her     
left1 a branch of olive4 ,though her    
deed was bloody1 she had brought  peace 
to the land4    ,flemish art neglects   
the olive1 and except in the drawings of
 ,martin  ,schngauer1#acd whose grave   
gentle ,gabriels wear olive crowns1 it  
is  seldom seen in ,germany4 ,the reason
 is easy to guess4 ,the olive tree  not 
growing in the ,north1 the painters     
would be at a loss to find a  branch    
from which to draw1 and the people1     
unacquainted with the leaf1  would      
scarcely recognize its hidden message of
 peace4 ,in ,france it is  seen less    
rarely4 ,on the sculptured portal of the
 ,cathedral of ,amiens  there is a      
curious rendering of the parable of the 
,wise and the ,foolish  ,virgins4 ,a    

withered olive tree1 without fruit or   
leaves1 grows by the  side of the       
foolish maidens1 and a healthy olive    
tree1 laden with fruit  and ready with  
abundance of oil1 is beside those       
maidens who were wise4    ,but on the   
whole the olive is an ,italian1 and more
 particularly a  ,sienese1 symbol1      
though ,botticelli also loved the       
silvery leaves4 ,in  his magnificent    
#8,pallas taming the ,centaur1'#ace     
painted for ,lorenzo  de' ,medici1 to   
commemorate his diplomatic victory over 
the ,king of  ,naples and the ,league in
 #adhj1 olive encircles the head of the 
lovely  goddess and is wreathed about   
her dress4 ,the surface meaning of the  
picture is that1 by the arts of peace   
taught them by the beneficent  goddess1 
men were enabled to overcome the        
savagery of nature1 typified  by the    
centaur4 ,but it also shows1            
allegorically1 how the wise             
statesmanship of ,lorenzo 7with whose   
badge1 rings interlaced1 the gown  of   

,pallas is #8sem'7 guided the war-loving
 ,league1 here figured as the  centaur1 
into the ways of ,peace4          ,x    
,,thorns      ,thorns and thorn branches
 signify in general grief and           
tribulation1  the word tribulation      
itself being derived from a ,latin root 
signifying  thistles or briars4 ,but1   
according to ,saint ,thomas ,aquinas1   
thorn  bushes signify the minor sins1   
and growing briars or brambles those    
greater ones1 #8qu pungunt conscientiam 
propriam1' etc4    ,he is supported in  
his opinion by ,saint ,anselm1 and both 
saints explain  in this sense the words 
of ,saint ,paul1 who wrote to the       
,hebrews3    #8,that which beareth      
thorns and briars is rejected and is    
nigh unto  cursing1 whose end is to be  
burned4'    ,the crown of thorns with   
which jesting soldiers crowned the      
,christ  was in itself an emblem1 or at 
least a parody1 of an emperor's festal  
rose-crown4 ,according to ,the ,history 
of the ,crown of ,thorns of the  ,holy  

,one1#acf the first crown with which    
,jesus ,christ was crowned was  made of 
white-thorn and was removed before the  
,crucifixion and replaced  by a second  
de juncis marinis4    ,but in the great 
majority of scenes from the ,passion the
 crown is  merely formed of large thorns
 without any attempt to realize any     
particular natural growth4 ,in ,germany1
 where ,entombments and ,piets  were    
more often painted than in other        
countries1 the crown is  frequently     
green1 in allusion1 it is suggested1 to 
the words3 #8,if these  things be done  
in the green wood1 what shall be done in
 the dry8'    ,in these pictures the    
crown of thorns1 if not still upon the  
,saviour's  head1 is usually placed very
 prominently in the foreground1 marking 
to  some extent the divinity of the dead
 ,christ1 for1 since life had fled1     
there could be no halo4    ,in ,northern
 art the crown of thorns remains always 
unchanged1 the  symbol of ,christ's     
sufferings1 but in at least one ,italian

 ,piet1#acg  the dry prickles round the 
dead ,christ's brow have bloomed with   
delicate white briar-roses--an exquisite
 figure of ,love's triumph over  ,pain4 
,sometimes1 in pathetic forecast1 the   
,child ,christ has the crown of  thorns 
hung on ,his tiny wrist#ach or plays    
with it as with a toy1 and  in a very   
charming picture1#aci with less poignant
 and more pleasing  symbolism1 a waiting
 child-angel stands by with a wreath of 
the blue  sea-holly4    ,in ,spain the  
,christian faith was stern4 ,faith and  
suffering were more  closely allied than
 faith and joy4 ,they had no #8jesters  
of the ,lord1'  and their saints        
glorified ,god by self-inflicted pain   
rather than  by acts of mercy4 ,so their
 ,christ in childhood was not a smiling1
  unconscious bambino1 but a sad-faced  
child who wounds ,himself with  the     
rose-twigs which ,he twists into a      
crown4 ,the rose-thorn tears ,his  flesh
 but the roses lie beside ,him and round
 ,his feet1 for ,his griefs  and        

sufferings were the outcome of ,his     
divine love4 ,both ,zurburan#adj  and   
,alonzo ,cano#ada painted fine pictures 
on this theme4    ,illustration3        
,zurburan          ,photo ,anderson     
,,the ,,crown ,,of ,,thorns    7,museo  
,provinciale1 ,seville7    ,there is a  
#8,coronation of the ,virgin' by ,hans  
,burgkmair1#adb painted  in #aejg1 where
 beneath a cross-surmounted imperial    
crown ,christ wears  the ,crown of      
,thorns4 ,in several of the ,french     
fifteenth-century  miniatures of the    
,trinity in ,glory1 ,god the ,son still 
wears the ,crown  of ,thorns1 but this  
combination of the two crowns is rare4  
,it was1  however1 in reverent          
remembrance of the thorn-crowned ,king  
of the ,jews  that the ,crusader1       
,godfrey de ,bouillon1 twisted a        
thorn-branch round  his coronet when he 
was crowned ,king of ,jerusalem4 ,his   
bronze statue1  wearing this double     
crown1 stands with those of the other   
,christian  kings guarding the tomb of  

,maximilian in ,innsbruck ,cathedral4   
,among modern symbolists1 ,holman ,hunt 
has used thorns with finest  effect4 ,in
 his #8,light of the ,world' the        
,saviour wears again the double  crown1 
the thorns which symbolize ,his         
sufferings intertwisted with the  golden
 crown of ,his divinity4 ,he stands with
 the lantern1 which is  the light of    
,his ,gospel1 before the closed door of 
the human heart1 a  door all overgrown  
and blocked by the weeds and briars     
which are the  symbols of sin and things
 evil4 ,there is the poisonous hemlock1 
the ivy  which kills the tree that it   
embraces1 thorns denoting the lesser    
sins1  and the brambles which are the   
emblems of the greater ones4 ,according 
to ,raban ,maur the bramble is also an  
emblem of the riches which destroy  the 
soul4    ,in several modern pictures of 
#8,the ,good ,shepherd' ,christ is      
depicted  as rescuing a lamb caught by  
its wool in the briars of the           
wilderness4  ,the lamb1 of course1 is   

the emblem of an erring soul1 and the   
briars  represent those sins which hold 
it back from answering the ,shepherd's  
call4    ,in connection with the saints1
 the ,crown of ,thorns is not used      
symbolically1 except when placed upon   
the head of ,saint ,catharine of        
,siena1#adc to indicate her austerities4
 ,according to the legend1  ,christ in a
 vision offered her a crown of roses or 
a crown of thorns  and she chose the    
thorns4 ,when it is carried by ,saint   
,louis of ,france  it is to recall the  
fact that it was he who brought to      
,france1 as her  most precious relic1   
the ,holy ,crown itself4    ,the tonsure
 was originally instituted to keep fresh
 in the memory the  ,saviour's ,crown of
 ,thorns4 ,and in the #8,paradise' of   
,fra ,angelico#add  the monks are       
crowned with roses4 ,thus the emblem    
reverted to the  original symbol4 ,the  
,crown of ,thorns was the parody of the 
rose-crown1  symbol of rejoicing2 the   
tonsure the reverent imitation of the   

thorny  wreath1 and angels at the       
entrance of ,paradise change the tonsure
 for a  wreath of roses4    ,in early   
,german art the ,virgin is often found  
seated in a garden of  which each flower
 has its significance4 ,behind and      
around her there  is usually a sort of  
trellis or bower covered with roses4    
,the roses  have very pronounced thorns1
 and the thorns are accentuated to      
recall  that ,mary is the lily and the  
bride of the ,canticles1 the #8,lily    
among  thorns4' ,in an ,assumption of   
,seghers#ade one of the attendant putti 
flies towards her with a single lily    
enclosed in branches covered with       
long-spiked thorns4    ,on the other    
hand1 when the rose is the direct       
emblem1 not the  attribute of the       
,madonna1 it has no thorns1 for then it 
illustrates  her title1 #8rosa sine     
spina4'    ,the ,roman ,breviary likens 
the ,virgin to the burning thorn bush in
  which ,jehovah revealed ,himself to   
,moses and the simile was cited  by     

,bishop ,proclus in a ,mary-sermon      
preached in the fifth century4  ,though 
enwrapped in the all-consuming flame of 
divine love1 she yet  remains unharmed4 
,it is only in ,german art that this    
simile has been  pictorially translated4
 ,german artists were familiar with the 
idea  through ,conrad von ,wrtzburg's   
apostrophe to the ,virgin3       #8,in  
the thorn bush on the bare field        
,moses1 the hero of ,god      ,saw in a 
glow of bright fire      ,the birth of  
our ,saviour foreshadowed4      ,in the 
blast of the flame      ,it remained    
unaltered      ,as if neither leaf nor  
twig      ,perceived the death-giving   
blaze4      ,in this we may recognize   
,the full magnificence of thy           
maidenhood4'#adf    ,and we find this   
burning ,thorn ,bush with the ,ivory    
,tower1 the ,sealed  ,fountain1 the     
,fleece of ,gideon and other emblems of 
the ,virgin1 in  the fifteenth-century  
renderings of the ,hortus ,inclusus and 
in the  background of the essentially   

,german allegory of the ,incarnation1   
known  as the #8,hunting of the         
,unicorn4' ,there are some fine         
embroideries and  tapestries of the     
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries in   
the ,bavarian  ,national ,museum1#adg in
 which the burning thorn bush1 with the 
other  symbols of the ,virgin's purity1 
are worked with most careful detail4    
,the burning bush1 not particularly a   
thorn bush1 but the #8bush' of our      
,authorized ,version1 is now the chosen 
emblem of the ,church of ,scotland4     
,there were neither thorns nor thistles 
in ,eden4 ,it was not till the day  when
 ,adam fell that ,god laid a curse upon 
the ground3 #8,thorns also and  thistles
 shall it bring forth to thee4'         
,therefore thorns and thistles  are in  
general the symbols of sin and death4 ,a
 little ,german woodcut  expresses      
eternal death with gruesome             
completeness3 a skull1 with the  apple  
of damnation between its bare jaws1 has 
round its brow a wreath  of twisted     

thorns4          ,,xi    ,,the ,,palm   
,the ,romans took palms for their symbol
 of ,victory4 ,there is a  sarcophagus  
in the ,vatican on which is carved a    
,roman conqueror with  captive          
barbarians kneeling before him1 and the 
winged ,victory who  crowns him with    
laurel holds a palm in her left hand4   
,simon ,maccabees1 after he had taken   
the ,tower of ,jerusalem1 entered it    
#8with thanksgiving1 and branches of    
palm trees and with harps4'#adh  ,and   
the seers of ,scripture saw palms in    
heaven3 #8,a great multitude1  which no 
man could number1 of all nations1 and   
kindreds and people1 and  tongues1 stood
 before the throne and before the ,lamb 
clothed with white  robes1 and palms in 
their hands4'#adi #8,these be they that 
have put off  the mortal clothing and   
put on the immortal1 and have confessed 
the  name of ,god2 now are they crowned 
and receive palms4'#aej    ,palms were  
therefore the meed of martyrdom1 the    
symbol of the martyrs'  victory over    

death4       #8444 ,the angel said      
,god liketh thy request1      ,and bothe
 with the palme of martirdome1      ,ye 
shallen come unto ,his blissful         
rest4'#aea    ,during the first three   
centuries of ,christianity ,christian   
art  concerned itself almost exclusively
 with the events recounted in the  ,old 
and ,new ,testaments and the ,apocryphal
 ,gospels4 #8,but during the  fourth    
century artists began to represent the  
acts of the martyrs1 at  the bidding of 
,saint ,basil1 who called to his aid    
illustrious painters  of athletic       
combats1 to paint with resplendent      
colours the martyr  ,barlaam1 the       
crowned athlete1 whom he found himself  
unable adequately  to describe4444 ,a   
fresco came to light in #ahhg1 under the
 ,church of ,,ss4  ,giovanni e ,paolo on
 the ,celian ,hill1 which shows three   
,christians being  put to death beneath 
the rule of ,julian the ,apostate1      
kneeling with  eyes bound and hands tied
 behind their backs4 ,this may be       

considered as  the first representation 
of a martyrdom4444'#aeb    ,sixtus ,,iii
 7#dcb-ddj71 as is shown by the         
inscription which is read  above the    
principal door of ,santa ,maria         
,maggiore1 had had the  instruments of  
their martyrdom painted only beneath the
 feet of the  martyrs4       #8,ecce tui
 testes uteri sibi proemia portant      
,sub pedibusque jacet passio cuique sua4
      ,ferrum1 flamma1 ferae1 fluvius1  
svumque venenum      ,tot tamen has     
mortes una corona manet4'#aec    ,thus  
in the fourth century there were        
representations of martyrdoms1  and in  
the fifth century single figures of the 
martyrs more or less  idealized1 but    
they apparently carried the crown of    
victory1 #8the  crown of their high     
calling1' not the palm4 ,but though the 
crown was  generally used1 the palm of  
the primitive ,christian ,church was not
  forgotten1 for1 as ,cassiodorus1      
writing at the beginning of the sixth   
century1 points out1 it was palms which1

 in the eyes of the people1  indicated  
those strong athletes who were          
victorious1 and advocates  their use as 
a religious symbol4    ,palms at this   
period seem to have been used as an     
emblem of the public  games themselves4 
,on the consular diptyches1 the double  
tablets of  ivory which a consul had    
carved to commemorate his entry into    
office1  it was customary to put palms  
beneath the figure of the consul1 among 
the bags of money and other objects that
 were supposed to represent the         
benefits which would accrue to the      
populace beneath his rule4    ,it was   
probably this secular use of the palm   
which excluded it from  the symbolism of
 the ,church during the early centuries1
 for it is palm  trees not palm branches
 which are found in the early mosaics1  
notably  those of ,s4 ,apollinare ,nuova
 in ,ravenna1 where palm trees alternate
  with the figures round the frieze1 and
 palm trees1 according to ,st  ,ambrose1
 were not the symbol of victory but the 

emblem of the righteous  man1 #8for its 
roots are upon the earth but its head is
 lifted towards  the heavens4'    ,but  
by the thirteenth century the public    
games had dropped from ,italian  social 
life1 and religious art reverted once   
more to the palm branch  of the         
catacombs as the symbol of a martyr's   
triumph over death4  ,durandus1 writing 
about the year #abhf1 unites the        
different renderings  of the palm's     
significance4 ,he says3 #8,martyrs are  
painted with the  instruments of their  
torture and sometimes with palms1 which 
signify  victory1 according to that     
saying3    #88,the righteous shall      
flourish like a palm tree2 as a palm    
tree  flourishes1 so his memory shall be
 preserved40'#aed    ,after the         
,renaissance martyrs were very generally
 depicted with palms1  either in place  
of1 or in addition to1 the instruments  
of their  martyrdom4 ,they varied in    
size and shape1 from the tiny closed    
palm  no longer than a human hand1 used 

by ,cimabue1#aee to the magnificent     
pedestal of palm branches on which      
,carpaccio has set his #8,saint ,ursula 
in ,glory4'#aef ,saint ,christopher1 the
 giant saint1 in consideration  of his  
size1 was always allowed a whole palm   
tree as his staff1 but a  whole palm    
tree1 or the tiniest scrap of its       
foliage1 carried exactly  the same      
meaning4    ,the palm is also given     
occasionally to several saints who have 
not  suffered a violent death1 but have 
been conspicuous for their victory  over
 pain and temptation2 for instance1     
,saint ,francis1 ,saint ,catharine  of  
,siena and ,saint ,clare4    ,even in   
the ,catacombs two palms are sometimes  
placed crossways1 not on  the tombs of  
martyrs only1 but on other ,christian   
tombs1 to signify the  victory of the   
cross4 ,for life as a declared          
,christian in the early  days of the    
faith was sufficiently difficult and    
perilous1 even if it  did not end in    
death at the hands of the executioner4  

,in the same way  the pilgrim who had   
overcome difficulties and encountered   
possible  death on a journey of piety to
 the holy sepulchre was permitted to    
take the name of palmer when he #8brings
 home his staff enwreathed with         
palm4'#aeg    ,meanwhile palms never    
fell into disuse as a secular symbol4   
,when they  appear on the seals and     
coins of emperors and kings they        
indicate  entirely worldly power and    
authority1 and it is not in recognition 
of sainthood that the winged genius     
presents ,henri ,,iv with palm and      
wreath of laurel in the fine allegorical
 picture of his #8,entry into  ,paris   
after the ,battle of ,ivry4'#aeh    ,in 
a hymn of ,saint ,augustine1 ,jesus     
,christ is designated the #8,palma      
bellatorum1' but1 perhaps by reason of  
its pagan origin1 and also  because it  
has never been exclusively a religious  
symbol1 ,christ as  the conqueror of sin
 and death is seldom depicted with the  
palm of  victory4 ,in a few devotional  

,crucifixions palms are placed crossways
  above the ,saviour's head1 and very   
rarely it is seen in the hand of the    
newly-risen ,christ4 ,he almost         
invariably carries instead the banner   
of the ,resurrection with a scarlet     
cross upon a white ground4 ,in one  of  
the rare representations#aei where ,he  
holds a palm ,he holds also  the banner 
in ,his other hand1 and it is striking  
how the adding of the  lesser symbol to 
the greater1 an error the early masters 
carefully  avoided1 detracts from the   
dignity of the figure4    ,in the four  
canonical gospels1 palms as a symbol are
 only mentioned  once1 the occasion     
being the entry of ,jesus ,christ       
#8riding lowly upon  an ass' into       
,jerusalem before the feast of the      
,passover4    #8,they 444 took branches 
of palm trees and went forth to meet    
,him1 and  cried ,hosanna6'    ,it was a
 respect paid to a reigning sovereign   
and would support the  accusation of the
 ,jews that ,he sought to make ,himself 

a king4    ,the entry into ,jerusalem is
 not an incident in the life of ,christ 
which  is used for devotional           
contemplation1 though it occurred       
usually in  the series of scenes from   
the life of ,christ which were frequent 
in  pre-,renaissance art1 executed in   
carved wood1 ivory and marble2 and in   
the hands of the villagers of the ,mount
 of ,olives the palms signified1  of    
course1 simply triumph1 for they had not
 yet gained the full  ,christian meaning
 of victory through the ,cross4    ,in  
representations of the entry of ,christ 
into ,jerusalem1 the palms  are merely a
 historical detail1 but it is a true    
symbol1 in defiance  of the probable    
fact1 when the ,saviour ,himself is     
represented carrying  the palm1 as in   
the ,biblia ,pauperum of #addj4afj ,it  
is then purely a  symbol of ,his triumph
 over sin and death4    ,in this same   
edition of the ,biblia ,pauperum the    
palm is also1  strangely enough1 placed 
in the hand of ,christ in the ,ecce     

,homo2 the  #8reed in ,his right hand'  
set there in mockery1 changed to the    
victor's  palm4    ,occasionally the    
palm is given to the angel ,gabriel when
 he comes  from ,heaven to announce the 
,saviour's approaching birth4 #8,ave' is
 his  salutation to the ,virgin1 and in 
,roman fashion1 as in salutation to a   
queen1 he kneels with a lifted palm4    
,spinello ,aretino paints ,gabriel with 
the palm4 ,in his ,annunciation at      
,arezzo#afa the angel is first seen     
above1 flying with the palm from  before
 ,god's throne4 ,below he kneels1 the   
palm in his hand1 before the  ,virgin4  
,ambrogio ,lorenzetti#afb and others    
follow the same tradition1  but the palm
 was soon superseded in ,siena by the   
olive and elsewhere by  the lily1 which 
was adopted by painters of all nations  
as the flower of  the ,annunciation4    
,the ,legenda ,aurea of ,jacobus de     
,voragine gives an account of the  death
 and burial of the ,virgin4 ,the legend 
is said to be an invention  of the      

,gnostics1 and there is reason to       
believe of ,lencius in the  second      
century4#afc    ,shortly before the     
,virgin's death the angel ,gabriel again
 appeared to  her1 and #8he gave her a  
branch of palm from ,paradise which he  
commanded  should be borne before her   
bier4'    ,this branch of palm was      
clearly the symbol of victory over sin1 
since she had passed a full lifetime in 
perfect sinlessness and her  surpassing 
sorrows had entitled her to the reward  
of martyrdom4    ,the ,legend continues3
    #8,and the palm shone which he had  
left behind with great clearness2  it   
was green like a natural branch and its 
leaves shimmered like the  morning      
star4' ,the palm1 therefore1 is         
distinguished from the palms  of the    
martyrs by being encircled with stars4  
,a ,sienese artist paints  seven1#afd   
the sacred number1 corresponding with   
the ,virgin's sorrows2  other artists   
give twelve1 foreshadowing that there   
should be upon her  head #8a crown of   

twelve stars4'    ,usually1 in ,italian 
pictures of the death or #8,dormition'  
of the ,virgin1  an angel1 or ,saint    
,john the ,evangelist1 appears at her   
bedside  carrying the palm4 ,northern   
art was almost entirely uninfluenced by 
the  details given by ,jacobus de       
,voragine of the ,virgin's death and    
burial1  and though in ,germany #8,the  
,death of the ,virgin' is a very        
favourite  subject1 the palm is never   
introduced4 ,saint ,john frequently1    
however1  holds a lighted taper1 and    
some form of the starry palm tradition  
may  have drifted northwards1 for the   
master of the ,sterzing ,altar#afe      
paints a cluster of star-shaped flowers 
in the hand of ,saint ,john1 who  bends 
over the inanimate form of the ,virgin4 
,her body was carried by divine command 
to the valley of ,jehoshaphat1  #8and   
,john bare the palm branch in front of  
it4'    ,this scene1 too1 belongs to    
,italian art1 and usually makes a       
beautiful  processional group4 ,saint   

,john1 with the privilege of a son1     
walks  before the bier4 ,duccio di      
,buoninsegna#aff paints him with the    
closed  narrow palm of a martyr4 ,in the
 charming little long-shaped picture by 
,fra ,angelico#afg the palm has its     
fan-shaped leaves spread wide and  it   
shines as if it were of gold4    ,in the
 #8,immaculate ,conception' of the      
,spanish school one of the  attendant   
putti usually carries a palm4 ,this may 
be the palm of  victory over sin and    
death1 or1 following another authority1 
it may be  a symbol of the ,immaculate  
,conception1 since it bears fruit at the
 same  moment at which it flowers4#afh  
,according to ,dr ,anselm ,salzer1      
,o4,s4,b41 #8,the palm1 when referring  
to  ,mary1 is a figure of her victory   
over the world and its temptations1 of  
her everlasting virtue1 of her          
sovereignty in heaven1 of the protection
  that she offers to mankind1 of her    
triumphant motherhood and of the  beauty
 of her soul4'#afi          ,,xii       

,,the ,,acanthus      ,one plant1 the   
acanthus1 which was very much used by   
pre-,renaissance  artists1 seems to have
 dropped later from the flora of        
symbolism4    ,illustration3            
,photo ,alinari    ,,the ,,acanthus ,,of
 ,,paradise    ,mosaic of #acth century 
7,s4 ,clemente1 ,rome7    ,paradise was 
embowered1 according to ,saint ,paulino 
da ,nola1 in  floriferi caeleste nemus  
paradisi1 and curving branches of       
acanthus  indicate ,heaven in the       
mosaics of the ,baptistery of ,ravenna  
and in  the apse of ,st ,john ,lateran4 
,the ,trees of ,jesse and the ,trees of 
,life  in early art are also founded on 
the acanthus with various symbolical    
details niched in the branches4 ,it     
surrounds the #8,coronation' and fills  
the space above the heads of the saints 
in the large central mosaic  of ,s4     
,maria ,maggiore#agj and of the fine    
mosaic in ,s4 ,clemente4#aga  ,venturi  
writes of the latter3    #8,from the    
plant1 whence rises the ,cross1 spring  

two green boughs which  wreath over all 
the abside1 enclosing with their spirals
 birds1  flowers and saints to give the 
idea of the garden of felicity4 ,in such
  a way1 in the ,dugento1 at the        
distance of so many centuries1 the      
verses of ,st ,paulino da ,nola are     
illustrated once more4'    ,but after   
the thirteenth century acanthus plants  
of vast proportions  were no longer used
 to symbolize the gardens of ,heaven4   
,heaven became a  natural park-like     
place with fruit trees and flower-grown 
grass1 except  for its inhabitants1     
differing little from any princely      
garden4 ,the  plant was still used as   
the motive of much decoration1          
ecclesiastical  and secular1 but it was 
no longer seen in connection with       
devotional  subjects as the             
representative plant of ,heaven4        
,,xiii    ,,the ,,fleur-,,de-,,lys      
,among the symbolical flowers of art1   
the golden fleurs-de-lys of ,france     
hold a high position4 ,they were the    

arms of the ,king of ,france1 #8the     
eldest son of the ,church'2 they were   
borne by ,saint ,louis1 the royal       
saint1 and are typical of ,christian    
royalty4 ,till the reign of ,henry      
,,viii they appeared upon the royal     
banner of ,england4 ,their origin1      
however1 in spite of latter-day legends1
 was non-,christian1 nor are  they      
distinctively lilies4 ,the learned ,m4  
de ,beaumont1 who has made a  special   
study of the origins of the             
fleur-de-lys1 or fleur-de-lis1 as  he   
prefers to spell it1 has thus summed up 
his researches3    #a4 ,armorial        
bearings did not commence in ,france    
till after the first  ,crusade4    #b4  
,it was in imitation of the ,arabs and  
,persians that chivalry1  tourneys and  
coats of arms were adopted in ,europe   
and ,france4    #c4 ,this flower1 which 
we name the fleur-de-lis1 is the symbol 
of  fecundity and royalty in ancient    
,egypt2 it is also the sacred plant  and
 tree of life1 adopted with the same    

symbolical significance by the          
,assyrians and ,persians1 from whom it  
passed to ,byzantium1 to arrive at  last
 in the ,teutonic countries bordering on
 the ,east4 ,it came at the  same time  
to the ,venetians1 and the ,lombards1   
the ,spaniards and the  ,french1 and    
this significant form ornamented        
sceptres and crowns1 the  attributes of 
royalty4    #d4 ,when the laws of       
heraldry were at last established in    
,france1 after  the ,crusades1 this     
symbol became the arms of the ,kings of 
,france1 who  entitled themselves rois  
par excellence4 ,later1 the origin being
  forgotten and lost1 the ,celtic root  
of the word li was ignored by  the      
heralds4 ,they regarded this symbolical 
ornament as the lilium  or garden lily1 
in itself a symbol of the ,virgin1 which
 for the most  ,christian ,kings of     
,france must have been a powerful motive
 for its  adoption4 ,perhaps even a     
religious scruple may have been the     
cause  of this transformation of the    

heathen into the ,christian symbol4 ,it 
was not till then that the heraldic     
writers1 the greater part of whom       
belonged to the ,church1 forced         
themselves to recognize in the heraldic 
fleur-de-lys the form of the lilium1    
even though1 in place of being  or upon 
azur and having three petals1 it ought  
in that case to have  five petals and   
appear in argent4#agb    ,the monkish   
heralds found a very elaborate symbolism
 in the royal  shield of ,france4 ,the  
lilies were of gold1 not silver1 because
 in  heraldry gold signifies the four   
kingly virtues1 nobility1 goodwill1     
charity and magnanimity4    ,they are   
three in number because this number is  
complete as is the ,holy  ,trinity4444  
,also1 the centre one signifies the     
,christian faith1 that on  the right the
 clergy1 that on the left the army4     
,there was no end to  the hidden        
meanings4    #8,enfin1' concludes ,carlo
 ,degrassalio of ,carcassonne1 #8ces    
trois  fleurs-de-lis d'or sont sur un cu

 d'azur1 parceque1 de mme que ,dieu1  le
 roi des rois1 la puissance des         
puissances1 a en quelque sorte pour  cu 
le bleu firmament1 resplendissant       
d'astres d'or2 de mme le roi  de        
,france1 fils an de l',eglise1 porte    
pour la plus grande gloire du  ,christ1 
l'cu le plus noble1 cu sur lequel les   
lis d'or brillent comme  les astres sur 
un ciel serein4'#agc    ,tradition says 
that the first appearance of the        
fleur-de-lys upon this  earth was at the
 baptism of ,king ,clovis4 ,king ,clovis
 was married to  ,clotilda1 a ,christian
 ,princess of ,burgundy1 and her prayers
 having  obtained the victory for       
,france at a critical moment1 he in     
gratitude  became a ,christian also4 ,on
 the occasion of his baptism by ,saint  
,rmi  an angel presented him with three 
heavenly lilies4    ,in the ,bedford    
,missal1#agd presented to ,henry ,,vi   
when he was crowned  ,king of ,france1  
the legend is illustrated in miniature4 
,the angel is  shown receiving the three

 lilies in ,heaven4 ,he descends to     
earth and  carries them to ,saint ,rmi1 
who reverently receives them in a napkin
  and gives them to ,queen ,clotilda4   
,lower down in the picture ,clotilda    
presents the emblazoned shield bearing  
the three fleurs-de-lys to  her husband4
 ,this legend might seem disproved by   
the decoration of  fleurs-de-lys1 which 
was already upon the great brazen bowl  
now in the  ,louvre1 known as the ,font 
of ,king ,clovis1 had not recent        
archological  investigation discovered  
the origin of the bowl to be neither    
,frankish  nor ,christian1 and the      
fleurs-de-lys prove merely that the     
vessel was  designed for royal use4     
,the confusion of the fleur-de-lys with 
the lily of ,heaven and the  flower of  
the ,virgin gave it a semi-religious    
value1 which excused  its intrusion into
 the decoration of churches and church  
furniture4  ,sometimes it was used      
entirely heraldically1 as the indication
 of  the giver of a gift4 ,it is used   

heraldically upon the silver shrine  of 
,saint ,simeon at ,zara1 the gift of    
,louis the ,great and his wife1         
,elizabeth1 where the fleur-de-lys of   
the coat of arms is repeated  throughout
 the entire decoration4 ,heraldically1  
yet with some sense  of the right       
placing of the flower which emblemizes  
purity1 were the  fleurs-de-lys         
embroidered with the word amor upon the 
tiny shoes  of the ,virgin de los       
,reyes4 ,the figure1 which is still in  
,seville  ,cathedral1 was a gift from   
,saint ,louis of ,france to his brother 
saint1  ,ferdinand of ,spain4    ,the   
flower is again heraldic upon the       
magnificent tomb of ,robert the         
,wise1#age the patron of ,giotto and    
,simone ,martini1 where it decorates    
the background with fine effect1 though 
it is perhaps too insistently  repeated 
on crowns1 sceptres1 brooches and the   
floriation of crosses2  but the         
constantly-recurring fleurs-de-lys in   
the architecture of  the ,cistercian    

,brotherhood appear quite definitely as 
the flower of  the ,virgin4 ,she was the
 patron of the order1 and their famous  
saint1  ,bernard of ,clairvaux--#8her   
own faithful ,bernard'--devoted his life
  to praising the #8lily of the valley4'
 ,her impress is upon the stone  of the 
,cistercian abbeys of ,england and of   
,france1 where repeatedly  we find the  
#8carved work of open lilies4' ,but the 
,cistercians had no  monopoly of the    
symbol4 ,almost naturally the stone work
 of ,french  ,gothic architecture seems 
to bud and break into the formal flower4
  ,in the great ,church of ,albi each   
upspringing slender shaft ends in a     
fleur1 alternating with shields along   
the screen4 ,in the rood-loft of  ,st   
,florentin1 in the town of that name1   
fleurs-de-lys form the centre  of       
elaborate tracery1 and in the rood-loft 
of the ,madeleine at ,troyes a  very    
beautiful crowned fleur-de-lys fills the
 panels of the surmounting  balustrade4 
,in the panel#agf designed for the tomb 

of ,edward ,,vi by ,torregiano1 and  now
 forming part of the altar above ,henry 
,,vii's tomb1 the rose and the  lily    
meet in a charming ,renaissance         
decoration1 and the link between  the   
heraldic and the symbolical seems to be 
supplied1 for the personal  badges of   
the king1 the ,tudor rose and the       
fleur-de-lys1 are woven  together in    
flowing lines1 till1 losing heraldic    
stiffness and personal  application1    
they become the ,rose of ,love and the  
,lily of ,purity1 a fit  decoration for 
the altar of ,god4    ,but it was not in
 ,france and ,england only that the     
fleur-de-lys  was used as a symbol of   
royalty4 ,in a ,greek miniature of the  
tenth  century#agg fleurs-de-lys are    
scattered over the mantle of ,king      
,david1  and ,didron mentions that he   
saw a fleur-de-lys ornamentation of the 
thirteenth century in the ,church of    
,hecatompyli4 ,the miniature was1 of    
course1 painted before the lilies had   
appeared on the royal banner of         

,france1 and the decoration at          
,hecatompyli would be drawn from        
,eastern  sources4    ,the most noble   
use of the fleur-de-lys is to express   
the majesty  of ,god4 ,floriated crowns 
as a symbol of ,divine majesty were     
common  in ,french1 ,flemish and ,german
 art1 but are seldom seen in ,italy4    
,most usually it is ,god the ,father    
only who is so distinguished4 ,in  a    
,french miniature of the end of the     
fourteenth century1#agh where  the three
 persons are represented under human    
form1 ,god the ,father  wears the       
floriated crown1 the other persons the  
cruciform halo4 ,in a  stained glass    
window1 with the figure of ,god the     
,father holding the  ,crucifix1#agi ,he 
wears a tiara of five tiers1 each       
decorated with the  fleur-de-lys4       
,memling and his school1 painting for   
the ,court of ,burgundy1 held to  the   
,french traditions1 and ,god the ,father
 in the #8,coronation' on the  shrine of
 ,st ,ursula1 ,god the ,son in the      

#8,christ surrounded by ,angels'  in    
,antwerp1 and the ,virgin on the wings  
7outer7 of the #8,last ,judgment'  at   
,danzig1 all wear crowns ornamented with
 fleurs-de-lys4    ,in ,german art there
 are fewer crowns bearing the           
fleur-de-lys1 the  crowns of both the   
,deity and the ,virgin having usually   
the arched  imperial form4 ,but very    
frequently towards the end of the       
fifteenth  century the rays of light1   
which in ,italian art make a cruciform  
bar across the halo of the ,saviour1 in 
,germany take the form of               
fleurs-de-lys4 ,they are particularly   
noticeable in #8,the ,virgin and  ,saint
 ,anne with the ,child' of ,hans        
,fries1#ahj and in a rather more        
elaborate form in the work of           
,wolgemut4#aha    ,there are two saints 
who have always had the right to wear   
the royal  lilies of ,france4    ,they  
are ,saint ,louis of ,france1 in his    
lifetime ,louis ,,ix1 and his           
grand-nephew ,louis1 ,bishop of         

,toulouse4    ,king ,louis1 the saintly 
soldier who brought to ,france the      
,crown of  ,thorns and1 to enshrine it1 
built the ,sainte ,chapelle1 died in    
,crusade  before the walls of ,tunis in 
#abgj4 ,twenty-seven years later he was 
canonized1 and ,giotto painted his      
portrait in ,santa ,croce4    ,mr       
,gardner comments on this fresco3       
#8,st ,louis the ,king 7one whom ,dante 
does not seem to have held in  honour71 
a splendid figure1 calm and noble1 in   
one hand the sceptre  and in the other  
the ,franciscan cord1 his royal robe    
besprinkled with  the golden lily of    
,france over the armour of the warrior  
of the ,cross1  his face absorbed in    
celestial contemplation4 ,he is the     
,christian  realization of the ,platonic
 philosopher king2 8,st ,louis10 says   
,walter  ,pater1 8precisely because his 
whole being was full of heavenly vision1
  in self-banishment from it for a      
while1 led and ruled the ,french people 
so magnanimously alike in peace and     

war40 ,opposite him is ,st ,louis of    
,toulouse1 with the royal crown at his  
feet2 below are ,st ,elizabeth of       
,hungary1 with her lap full of flowers1 
and1 opposite to her1 ,st ,clare1  of   
whom ,dante's ,piccarda tells so sweetly
 in the ,paradiso--that lady  on high   
whom1 8perfected life and lofty merit   
doth enheaven40'#ahb  ,saint ,clare     
carries a lily4    ,in the ,prado there 
is a ,holy ,trinity by ,c4 ,coello1     
where ,saint ,louis  is placed opposite 
to ,saint ,elizabeth of ,hungary1 who   
holds a basket  of roses1 and this      
grouping of the two royal saints is     
often found4 ,st  ,elizabeth was        
canonized before ,st ,louis was born1   
but they are well  matched in piety1    
both of noble birth1 both dying in the  
flower of  their age1 and both devoted  
to their people's welfare4 ,there is a  
very  interesting figure of ,saint      
,louis1 intellectual1 earnest and       
strong1 in  the ,mariage ,mystique#ahc  
of ,jean ,perral4    ,saint ,louis of   

,toulouse was the grandson of ,charles  
of ,anjou1 who was  suzerain of         
,florence for ten years4 ,perugia chose 
him as her patron  saint1 and in        
,florence he was patron of the ,parte   
,guelfa4 ,he is easily  recognized by   
his mitre and the fleurs-de-lys upon his
 cope4 ,there is  a statue of him by    
,donatello at ,santa ,croce1 and        
pictures elsewhere by  ,bonfigli1       
,simone ,martini1 ,moretto and ,cosimo  
,rosselli4    ,perhaps the most         
sympathetic and individual portrait of  
him is that of  ,bartolommeo            
,vivarini4#ahd ,he carries book and     
crozier and his youthful  face is very  
sweet and earnest1 though it has the set
 lips of the true  churchman4 ,the cope 
is bordered with a large design of      
fleurs-de-lys4    ,both these saints    
wear the fleur-de-lys to mark that they 
are members  of the ,royal ,house of    
,france4 ,the purity which the lily     
symbolizes when  regarded as the flower 
of the ,virgin is a secondary           

significance4 ,now  another holy one has
 joined them1 who also1 though of lowly 
birth1 bore  the golden lilies4 ,but for
 her they were the true lilies of       
maidenhood1  their form merely showing  
that the right to carry them on her     
banner  was the gift of a ,french king4 
#8,with a wreath woven by no mortal hand
 shall she 7,jeanne d',arc7 at  ,reims  
engarland happily the gardener of the   
,lily1 named ,charles1  son of          
,charles1' prophesied ,englinde1 the    
,hungarian seer1 and at  the fulfilment 
,charles was not ungrateful4 ,since a   
woman cannot  heraldically bear arms1 he
 granted to the brothers of the maid the
  right to wear two of the royal lilies 
on their shield4 ,the blazon was  d'azur
  la couronne royale d'or soutenue d'une
 pe d'argent croise  et pommete d'or en 
pal1 cotoye de deux fleurs-de-lis d'or4 
,they  were given at the same time      
7,december #adbi7 the surname of du lis4
    ,the sword has the blade ornamented 
with five fleurs-de-lys and is          

apparently the famous one unearthed in  
the ,church of ,st ,catharine at        
,fierbois1 #8decked with five           
flower-de-luces on each side4'#ahe ,but 
in the least doubtful of the many       
contemporary portraits of the ,maid     
7those in the collection of ,m4 ,george 
,spetz7 the fleurs-de-lys do not        
appear4 ,when questioned at her trial as
 to any supernatural power held  by her 
sword1 she declared3 #8,it was a rusty  
sword in the earth1 with  five crosses  
on it1 and ,i knew it through my        
voices4'#ahf    ,the clergy of the      
,church of ,st ,catharine1 however1     
after finding the  sword by ,jeanne's   
directions1 had had a scabbard made for 
it of crimson  velvet1 embroidered with 
fleurs-de-lys in gold1 and legend       
supported by  heraldry seems to have    
substituted the fleurs-de-lys of the    
scabbard  for the five crosses of the   
blade4    ,the device upon the banner   
was dictated to her by her patron       
saints1  ,margaret and ,catharine4 ,it  

was of white linen1 fringed with silk1  
and  embroidered with a figure of the   
,saviour holding a globe in ,his hands1 
while an angel knelt on either side in  
adoration4 ,jhesus ,maria was  inscribed
 at the foot4 ,a repetition of this     
banner recopied from age to  age is said
 to be preserved at ,tours4             
,,xiv    ,,the ,,lily ,,of ,,the        
,,annunciation      ,there is one       
incident in the life of the ,virgin     
,mary which is  particularly associated 
with lilies4 ,it is the ,annunciation4  
,the ,annunciation was not often        
depicted before the twelfth  century1   
though there are instances of it on some
 early ivories1  on a sarcophagus at    
,ravenna of the fifth century1 in the   
famous  sixth-century ,syrian ,,ms4 of  
the ,laurentian ,library1#ahg and among 
the  mosaics of ,santa ,maria           
,maggiore4#ahh ,during the twelfth and  
thirteenth  centuries1 while the        
veneration of the ,virgin within the    
,catholic  ,church steadily grew        

greater1 the story of her life1 as apart
 from  that of her ,divine ,son1        
appeared in sculpture and stained glass1
 but  still the ,annunciation was a     
comparatively rare subject and simply   
treated4 ,early in the fourteenth       
century1 however1 a whole flight of     
announcing angels settled down over     
,italy1 some drifting as far north  as  
,holland4 ,we find them kneeling1       
standing1 just alighting1 often with    
the wind of swift movement still in     
their garments and almost always on  the
 left hand of the picture1 with the     
,virgin in the place of honour  on the  
right4 ,the ,annunciation1 the          
announcing of the near approach  of     
#8the dayspring from on high1' which was
 to bring light and joy and  freedom to 
a world groping in the twilight of an   
imperfect revelation1  was an incident  
which particularly appealed to minds    
rejoicing in the  intellectual          
liberation of the ,renaissance4 ,it     
appealed1 too1 to the  joyous nature of 

the ,florentines1 who hated the sad and 
tragic aspects  of life1 loving fresh   
and spring-like things and rather       
elaborate  simplicity4 ,pictures of the 
,annunciation multiplied1 particularly  
in ,florence1 which was just then       
evolving the school which was to        
influence so powerfully the ,western    
world's pictorial conceptions of  the   
divine mysteries4 ,and in the great     
majority of ,annunciations we  find     
lilies1 for in this incident of the     
,virgin's life above all others  it was 
necessary to emphasize the purity which 
made the wonder of the  angel's         
salutation4    ,the most characteristic 
treatment of the lily1 as the lily of   
the  ,annunciation1 was to place it in a
 pot or vase4 ,about the year #abia1    
,cavallini1 the mosaicist1 was in ,rome 
decorating the ,church of ,s4  ,maria in
 ,trastevere1 and beneath the great     
centre mosaic of the apse  he placed a  
series of scenes from the life of the   
,virgin4 ,in the  ,annunciation the     

,virgin is seated on a marble throne1   
which has broad1  table-like arms4 ,on  
one arm there is a dish1 apparently of  
fruit1  and on the other a vase filled  
with lilies4 ,the vase may or may not   
have been placed there definitely as a  
symbol1 but as a detail--in  vulgar     
,english phraseology--it caught on4 ,we 
find it on the famous  carved           
candlestick of ,gaeta1#ahi worked by an 
unknown contemporary of  ,niccola       
d',apulia4 ,it appears on an embroidered
 book-cover of ,english  work#aij       
attributed to the end of the thirteenth 
century1 and is  cleverly squared out of
 the chequered background of a          
,netherlandish  music-book#aia of #accj4
    ,the vase of lilies soon became a   
more or less elaborate detail in        
numerous illuminations1 carvings and    
paintings4 ,the earliest of the         
,flemish masters1 ,jan van ,eyck1#aib   
,roger van der ,weyden#aic and the      
,master of ,flmalle1#aid make use of it4
 ,it was particularly popular in        

,florence4    ,the ,florentines loved   
the ,annunciation as a subject and were 
charmed by  the easy1 graceful symbolism
 of the lilies4 ,they were also1        
doubtless1  deeply gratified1 as        
citizens and as churchmen1 to identify  
the lily1  their city's badge1 as the   
flower of the ,virgin4    ,in ,spain1   
even before there was any native school 
of painting1 the vase  of lilies passed 
from being a detail to be an almost     
essential factor  in every              
representation of the ,annunciation1 and
 early in the fifteenth  century we find
 it standing detached as the special and
 distinguishing  attribute of the       
,virgin4 ,in the insignia of the ,order 
of the ,lily of  ,aragon1 founded in    
#adaj by ,ferdinand1 ,duke of           
,pegnafiel1 the chain  was composed of  
alternate griffins and pots of three    
lilies1 and ,ford  mentions that when   
the ,regent ,fernando recovered         
,antequera from the  ,moors he gave the 
city for arms the badge of his military 

order1 which  was ,la ,terraza1 #8the   
vase1' the pot of lilies of the         
,virgin4#aie    ,the symbol of the vase 
had come to the ,netherlands and        
,germany while  they were still         
pictorially inarticulate2 but when they 
at length found  means of expression1   
the ,germans slowly1 the ,flemings in a 
splendid  burst with the van ,eycks1 it 
was their earliest and their favourite  
symbol4 ,memling places it also beside  
his enthroned ,madonnas1 and  it is     
never omitted from an ,annunciation     
except on the occasions1  comparatively 
rare in the ,north1 when ,gabriel holds 
a branch of lilies  in his hand instead 
of the herald's wand4 ,then there is no 
vase1 for  there is no necessity to     
repeat the symbol4    ,but in ,italy    
itself the vase of lilies1 though       
popular1 was never  considered          
essential4 ,no vase decorates the       
loggias where sit the  ,virgins of      
,giotto1#aif ,botticelli1#aig ,melozzo  
da ,forl1#aih or  ,leonardo da          

,vinci1#aii though ,giotto introduces it
 with identical  symbolism in the       
,visitation4 ,indeed many of the most   
typical painters  of both the early and 
the high ,renaissance1 ,taddeo di       
,bartolo1#bjj  ,spinello ,aretino1#bja  
,fra ,angelico1#bjb ,lorenzo di         
,credi#bjc and  ,raphael1#bjd banish    
lilies entirely1 both from the vase and 
from  the angel's hand4 ,ghirlandaio    
places a vase beside the ,virgin's      
reading-desk1 but alters its            
significance by filling it with roses1  
daisies and jasmine1 the flowers of     
love1 innocence and divine  hope4#bje   
,on the other hand1 some of the         
,florentine artists who had a special   
fondness for the flower1 notably ,fra   
,filippo ,lippi1#bjf and the  ,della    
,robbias1#bjg use both1 so doubling the 
symbolism2 but it was  more correct1    
where there was a vase of lilies1 to    
show the angel  with folded hands or    
with a branch of olive1 or1 as in the   
beautiful  ,annunciation of ,jan van    

,eyck at ,st ,petersburg1 holding the   
herald's  wand4 ,in ,jan van ,eyck's    
,annunciation at ,berlin1 where ,gabriel
 carries a  magnificent bunch of lilies1
 there is no vase4    ,according to     
,northern tradition the true            
,annunciation lily should have  no      
stamens1 but this was a refinement of   
symbolism largely ignored by  artists1  
who were discouraged probably by the    
insipid appearance of  the flower when  
deprived of its gold-dusted centre4 ,in 
,italy it was  entirely neglected1 but  
some painters of the sixteenth century  
have  placed a tiny flame in the centre 
of each lily-cup2 a burning flame1      
according to ,vasari1#bjh signifying    
eternal love4    ,there seems to have   
been sometimes a doubt in the minds of  
the ,northern  artists as to which was  
really the ,madonna's flower1 the lilium
  candidum or the iris1 which so closely
 resembled in form the golden  lilies on
 the royal shields of ,france and       
,england4    ,memling1 who had painted  

the fleur-de-lys heraldically for the   
,duke of ,burgundy1#bji seemed unable to
 decide1 and in the vase of  the        
,annunciation1#baj as well as in the    
vase which stands beside  the enthroned 
,madonna1#baa he has placed an iris     
among the white  lilies4 ,or possibly1  
with a deeper symbolism1 taking the iris
 as the  fleur-de-lys1 the ancient      
symbol of royalty1 which1 with its three
  united petals1 recalls also the nature
 of the ,holy ,trinity1 he  has striven 
to interpret florally the message of the
 angel1 that ,god  incarnate would      
spring from a lily-like virginity4 ,it  
may not be  without design that the iris
 in the ,annunciation is overshadowed by
  the lilies1 while in the picture where
 the ,holy ,child sits upon ,his        
,mother's lap1 the iris in the vase 7in 
this case marked with the sacred        
monogram7 has sprung upwards beyond the 
white lilies4    ,illustration3         
,pinturicchio          ,photo ,alinari  
,,the ,,rose ,,of ,,divine ,,love       

,,rising ,,from ,a ,,precious ,,vessel  
7,borgia ,apartment1 ,vatican7          
,illustration3          ,pesello        
,photo ,alinari    ,,the ,,royal ,,lily 
,,springing ,,from ,a ,,humble ,,vase   
7,s4 ,spirito1 ,florence7    ,in the    
,church of ,s4 ,spirito in ,florence    
there is an altar-piece of the          
,annunciation which was at one time     
attributed to ,botticelli and is now    
usually ascribed to ,pesello4 ,the vase1
 placed midway between the two  figures1
 holds three purple irises4 ,perhaps the
 artist saw a symbol of  the ,holy      
,trinity in the three royal lilies      
growing on one stalk 7though  the       
,church held a belief in the incarnation
 of the ,trinity in unity to  be        
heresy71 in which case the colour1 the  
purple of humility1 would be            
appropriate4    ,more difficult to      
explain is the symbolism of the vase of 
lilies in the  ,annunciation upon the   
cover of a psalter1 in fine ,english    
needlework  of the thirteenth           

century4#bab ,the book belonged to      
,anne1 daughter of  ,sir ,simon         
,felbrigge1 and if the date given1 the  
end of the thirteenth  century1 is      
correct1 it is a very early instance of 
the ,virgin's vase  of lilies4 ,the     
figures have much dignity and sweep of  
line1 but the  lily1 which is a         
fleur-de-lys in form1 is red6 ,possibly 
in the garden  of the country convent   
where embroidery was worked no liliums  
grew4 ,the  nun would therefore take the
 only lilies she knew1 those of the     
royal  standard4 ,for colour she would  
remember that they surpassed ,solomon   
in his glory4 ,but1 even so1 the red    
lily argues an insensitiveness to       
symbolic values scarcely to be found    
among the ,latins4    ,the original     
symbolism of the vase of lilies was     
simple4 ,it signified  the purity of the
 ,maid of ,nazareth1 she of whom it was 
prophesied #8,a  ,virgin shall conceive 
and bear a ,son4' ,she does not hold the
 flower in  her hand as do the virgin   

martyrs who preserved their purity      
through  storm and stress1 but it grows 
naturally beside her and merely typifies
  her girlhood4 ,in the first half of   
the fifteenth century this seems  to    
have been the invariable intention4 ,but
 in the later half of that  century the 
meaning was developed and amplified4    
,distinction was  made between the vase 
and the flower it contained4 ,in ,france
 and in  ,spain1 where religious        
iconography is found in architectural   
detail  rather than in pictorial        
decoration1 the favourite arrangement of
 the  ,annunciation was to place the    
vase midway between the ,virgin and the 
angel1 a composition which from its     
equal balance was most decorative4  ,the
 ,virgin with drooping head and falling 
veil1 ,gabriel with curved  wings1 both 
leaning forward towards the central vase
 of lilies1 formed  an ideal filling for
 a lunette or the spandrels of an arch1 
and the  simplicity of the group made it
 particularly suitable for sculpture1   

both in wood and stone4 ,it is the      
central motive of many of the great     
carved and gilded reredos in ,spain and 
of the simpler stone altars  of ,france4
 ,the central vase of lilies had1       
however1 a tendency to  become ever     
larger1 till1 from being a detail1 it   
became the important  centre-point1 and 
in some ,french ,annunciations of the   
sixteenth century  the uninstructed     
heathen would merely see two figures    
worshipping1  apparently1 a large vase  
of flowers4    ,in two ,italian         
pictures1 that of doubtful origin       
already mentioned  which is in ,s4      
,spirito1 and the ,annunciation of      
,pinturicchio in the  ,vatican1 where   
the large vase is placed exactly in the 
centre of the  composition1 the flowers 
within the vase are not white lilies2   
they  are iris1 the royal lily1 in one  
case1 and roses1 the flower of divine   
love1 in the other4 ,therefore the      
flower-filled vase was no longer        
strictly the symbol of the ,virgin's    

purity4 ,a change1 hinted at when       
,memling placed the iris among the      
lilies1 had come about1 for the  flower 
which was the attribute of ,jesus       
,christ was now rising from the  vase   
and distinction had been made between   
the vase and the flower  which it       
contained4 ,christ is the mystic flower 
springing from a lowly  vessel4 ,he is  
the flower1 ,mary the vase4 ,the royal  
purple lily or the  rose of love are1   
therefore1 as appropriate a filling for 
the vase as  was the lily1 and there is 
no incongruity in any attitude of homage
  towards the vase on the part of the   
,virgin4 ,but since the compound  emblem
 was the emblem of the ,immaculate      
,conception1 naturally it is  most often
 the lily of purity which fills the     
vase4    ,in the ,annunciation of       
,albert ,drer's #8,smaller ,passion'#bac
 the lily  growing in its humble earthen
 pot undeniably refers to the perfect   
sinlessness of the soul which was yet to
 be born1 for the flowers are  still    

each tightly folded in its bud1 while in
 the culminating scene  of the series1  
where the ,saviour sits in judgment1 the
 lily1 with each  calyx fully expanded1 
is shown with the sword of justice      
behind ,his  head4    ,northern         
symbolism1 always deeper and more       
complicated than that of  the ,south1   
required that the vase which contained  
the lilies should  be transparent1 thus 
indicating the perfect purity of the    
body which  enshrined the soul of       
perfect innocence4 #8,in so far that the
 glass  allows all surroundings to shine
 through without being itself harmed1   
it has become the symbol of the         
,immaculate ,conception4 ,therefore in  
pictures of the ,annunciation a         
blossoming lily stalk in a transparent  
glass is placed at the feet of the      
,virgin4'#bad    ,the same idea is      
traced in the thirteenth-century        
,christmas carol3       #8,as the       
sunbeam through the glass      ,passeth 
but not staineth1      ,so the ,virgin  

as she was1      ,virgin still          
remaineth4'#bae    ,and somewhat akin is
 the mirror which occasionally appears1 
held by an  attendant putto in a        
,spanish #8,immaculate ,conception4'    
,the transparent vase is not often seen 
in ,italian ,annunciations1 for  it was 
usual in ,italy to place the stalk of   
lilies1 a complete symbol  in itself of 
virginity1 in the angel's hand1 and     
there was no need to  double the        
symbolism2 but the painters of the late 
fifteenth and early  sixteenth          
centuries1 in pictures of ,mary with the
 ,child or in a ,holy  ,family1 use the 
crystal vase frequently as an attribute 
of the ,infant  ,saviour1 filling it    
with those flowers which express ,his   
virtues1 the  violet of humility1 the   
rose or carnation of divine love1 the   
daisy of  innocence1 or the jasmine of  
heavenly hope4#baf    ,the actual number
 of blooms upon the lily stalk has also 
its  significance4 ,some think they     
should be three in number1 two fully    

opened flowers and one in bud1 forming  
what ,rossetti terms the  #8,tripoint4' 
#8,i' the centre is the ,tripoint3      
perfect each      ,except the second of 
its points1 to teach      ,that ,christ 
is not yet born4'    ,several of the    
masters of the fourteenth and fifteenth 
centuries  painted the two flowers with 
the bud or three fully-opened blooms1   
but  more often1 arguing possibly that  
this lily was the emblem of ,god the    
,son when made ,man1 and not of the     
,holy ,trinity1 they painted simply  a  
natural lily plant with clustering buds 
and one or many blossoms1  taking the   
whole plant as the symbol4    ,sometimes
 the vase holds three distinct stalks of
 lilies with a single  bloom on each1 an
 arrangement which was suggested1 it is 
said1 by the  ,dominican legend of the  
doubting ,master4    ,a ,master of the  
,dominicans1 unable to believe in the   
stainlessness of  the ,blessed ,virgin1 
went to ask help of the saintly brother 
,egidius4    #8,o ,master of the        

,preachers1' said ,egidius1 on meeting  
him1 #8,virgo ante  partum4' ,he struck 
the ground with his staff and from the  
spot there  immediately sprang a lily4  
#8,o doubting ,master1' he said again1  
#8,virgo  in partu4' ,he struck the     
earth and again a lily sprang4 ,he spoke
 a  third time1 #8,o my brother1 ,virgo 
post partum1' a third lily bloomed1  and
 the ,master of the ,dominicans doubted 
no more4    ,a detached vase holding    
three lily blooms occurs frequently as  
the  motive of an architectural         
decoration executed in low relief1 one  
beautiful example being above the door  
of the ,badia ,church of ,florence4     
,but it is not confined to buildings of 
,dominican origin1 and the  arrangement 
seems to owe its popularity more to its 
symmetry than to  any supporting legend4
 ,in pictures1 where greater freedom of 
treatment  is desirable1 the lilies are 
one1 two1 three or more--there is no    
rule4          ,,xv    ,,the ,,lily ,,of
 ,,the ,,angel ,,gabriel      ,in the   

majority of the ,annunciations which    
were painted during the  fourteenth and 
fifteenth centuries the archangel       
,gabriel carries a  lily4 ,in the       
earliest representations of the subject 
he has simply  a herald's wand1 which in
 later ,byzantine art usually terminated
 in  a fleur-de-lys1 the ancient symbol 
of royalty1 or in a more or less        
elaborate cross4 ,more rarely he carries
 a scroll on which are inscribed  the   
words of his message4    ,in the early  
,sienese school he still holds the      
herald's wand1#bag or  brings to the    
,virgin a branch of olive1#bah the      
symbol of peace and  goodwill4 ,once at 
least he holds a branch of laurel1#bai  
the meed of  those who excel1 and       
sometimes the palm#bbj of victory over  
sin4    ,in the famous ,annunciation of 
,simone ,martini1#bba ,gabriel1 who     
carries  a branch of olive1 is also     
olive-crowned1 and this seems to be the 
proper symbolism of the subject4 ,the   
messenger of ,god1 crowned with  peace1 

brings the olive branch of              
reconciliation between ,god and man  to 
the ,virgin1 beside whom stands a vase  
filled with the lilies which  symbolize 
her purity4 ,the dove hovers above4     
,it has not been decided which artist   
was the first to place the  stalk of    
lilies in the angel ,gabriel's hand1 and
 first had come the  lovely symbol of   
the vase of lilies by the ,virgin's     
side4 ,but in the  ,annunciation1 which 
forms part of ,simone ,martini's        
polyptych in the  ,museum of ,antwerp1  
we find the herald's wand just turning  
to a lily4  ,professor ,a4 ,venturi1 in 
his magnificent ,history of ,italian    
,art1  describes it4 ,the angel #8holds 
a lily with a long stem1 which is all   
white4 ,thus the stick or sceptre of    
ivory1 which we have already  seen in   
,duccio's picture1 has become partly    
stick1 partly lily-stem4  ,with ,duccio 
it is still the sceptre with three      
points1 that ,gabriel1  messenger of    
,god1 holds as sign of authority4 ,but  

look how the three  points change       
themselves to lily-buds1 and open the   
corolla1 as the  archangel extends the  
candid flower towards the ,virgin1 who  
was saluted  by ,david and the ,fathers 
as 8,the lily of the valleys40 ,the     
poetry of  ,christian art thus          
overthrows medival materialism and      
lavishes flowers  on fair likenesses of 
,mary4'    ,in this ,annunciation we    
find the three types of lilies used in  
art--the  lily growing freely and       
naturally in a vase beside the ,virgin2 
the  stiff lily1 half conventionalized  
in the angel's hand2 and the            
fleurs-de-lys1 wholly conventional1     
which ornament the arms of the          
,virgin's seat4    ,simone ,martini died
 in #acdd1 and by #acei1 the date of its
 completion1  every ,florentine artist  
must have seen the wonderful tabernacle 
raised  by ,orcagna in ,or ,san         
,michele1 and every artist in ,italy    
must have heard  descriptions of the    
shrine4       #8,che passa di bellezza1 

s'io ben recolo1      ,tutti gli altri  
che son dentro del secolo4'#bbb    ,on a
 panel of the ,tabernacle there is an   
,annunciation which was the  most       
beautiful representation of the subject 
so far given to the  world1 and the     
kneeling angel with the sweeping wings  
carries in his  left hand a heavy stalk 
of lilium candidum4    ,it is           
interesting to trace the evolution of   
the straight smooth  stick which the    
angel held in the earliest              
representations of the  ,annunciation   
into the natural branch of lilies       
carried by the typical  ,announcing     
,angel of ,christian art4 ,first we find
 upon the wand the  three-pointed       
fleur-de-lys1 which from the days of the
 ,assyrians  had ornamented the royal   
sceptre4 ,the heavenly herald bore a    
wand  ornamented with the royal symbol  
when he brought a message from the      
,lord of the ,universe to the ,maiden of
 the ,house of ,david1 who was to be    
the ,mother of ,his ,son4 ,gradually the

 fleur-de-lys gained some likeness  to  
the natural lily4 ,the sceptre was made 
of ivory4 ,it was white4 ,two  leaves   
appeared wreathing the stick4 ,midway in
 the transformation are  the lilies     
carried by the lovely choir of seated   
angels in a picture  by ,guariento4#bbc 
,each angel holds in his left hand an   
orb and in  the right a straight lily   
stem with leaves growing naturally up   
its  whole length4 ,at the top is a     
single flower1 which1 seen in profile1  
has the shape of the fleur-de-lys4      
,simone ,martini indicates the          
blossom's cup-like form4 ,with ,orcagna 
we find the fully-realized stem  of     
lilies4 ,one unidentified master of the 
fourteenth century#bbd went  even       
further in botanical fidelity1 and      
paints the bulb and pendent  rootlets1  
though1 strangely enough1 he at the same
 time keeps to the  old convention and  
places a scroll in the hand of both     
,madonna and  angel4    ,meanwhile1 in  
#acdd1 ,ambrogio di ,lorenzetti had     

painted an  ,annunciation#bbe in which  
the angel1 crowned with olive1 holds    
the palm branch with which the ancient  
,romans were accustomed to  salute a    
conqueror4 ,the symbol of the palm was  
used also by ,spinello  ,aretino1#bbf a 
pupil of ,giotto1 and was supported by  
,dante1 who  describes the angel        
,gabriel as3       #8,he that bore the  
palm      ,down unto ,mary1 when the    
,son of ,god      ,vouchsafed to clothe 
,him in terrestrial weeds4'    ,but it  
did not come into general use in this   
connection1 and chiefly  for the reason 
that the palm became consecrated to     
representations  of the last scenes of  
the ,virgin's life4 ,the ,legenda       
,aurea1  when recounting how the angel  
,gabriel announced to the ,virgin her   
approaching death1 states3 #8,he        
7,gabriel7 gave her a branch of palm    
from  ,paradise1 which he commanded     
should be borne before her bier4'       
,the palm was1 therefore1 a necessary   
detail in this scene1 and it was        

probably to avoid confusion between     
these two separate appearances of  the  
angel to the ,virgin that the palm has  
been reserved entirely for  the last    
,annunciation4 ,the religious sentiment 
of the age forbade the  portrayal of any
 sign of decrepitude in the ,virgin even
 at the hour of  her death1 and except  
for the substitution of the palm for the
 lily  and the reversal of the usual    
places of the figures1 the ,virgin being
  placed on the left and the angel on   
the right1 it would be difficult  to    
distinguish the scene where the ,virgin 
receives the news of her  approaching   
death1 from that in which her           
approaching motherhood is  announced to 
her4    ,it became the general rule1    
then1 for ,gabriel1 as the angel of the 
,annunciation of the ,saviour's birth1  
to carry a lily4 ,but the rule  was not 
invariable4 ,the early ,flemish artists1
 half painters1 half  craftsmen1 loved  
to depict the delicately-chiselled gold 
of jewelled  sceptres topped by an      

elaborate fleur-de-lys or the           
cross-surmounted  orb which signified   
the sovereignty of ,christ upon earth4  
,these  precious sceptres accorded well 
with the opulent and prosaic comfort  of
 the surroundings in which they set the 
sacred drama1 and reflect  the spirit of
 the ,northern mystics4 ,the clear      
detailed visions of  ,saint ,matilda1   
the inspired nun of ,saxony1 which      
occurred during the  last half of the   
thirteenth century1 and whose imagery   
has distinctly  influenced ,northern    
religious art1 fairly scintillate with  
mystical  gems4 ,even the roses and the 
lilies1 symbols1 she tells us1 of divine
  love and innocence1 which she saw in  
her glimpses of ,heaven1 were           
embroidered in gold and silver thread   
upon rich stuffs or cloth of gold4      
,italian art had different traditions4  
,it began with the utter  simplicity of 
,giotto and ,fra ,angelico1 though the  
,byzantine love of  rich trappings still
 lingered in ,siena4 ,as ,florentine art

 progressed  it did indeed become more  
elaborate1 till its inclination to      
magnificence was severely checked by    
,savonarola1 whose influence on  art has
 usually been wrongly estimated4 ,he was
 no blind iconoclast1  though without   
doubt objects of great artistic worth   
were burnt in his  famous holocaust of  
#8vanities1' which finished the         
,carnival of #adig4  ,on the contrary1  
as ,senator ,pasquale ,villari points   
out1 he was always  surrounded by the   
best artists of his century4 ,fra       
,bartolommeo1 for  four years after his 
death1 did not touch a brush1 such was  
his grief4  ,the ,della ,robbias were   
devoted to him2 two received the habit  
from  his hands4 ,lorenzo di ,credi was 
his partisan2 ,cronaca #8would speak  of
 nothing but the things of ,savonarola4'
 ,botticelli illustrated his  works1 and
 ,michael ,angelo was a most constant   
listener to his preaching4    ,he spoke 
plainly to the painters from his pulpit4
 ,the beauty of the  ,divinity1 of the  

,virgin and the ,saints was the beauty  
of holiness1 not  of outward adornment  
of fine raiment1 gold and jewels1 and   
#8the beauty  of man or woman in so far 
as it approaches to the primal beauty1  
so is  it great and more perfect4'#bbg  
,we read of the ,virgin that by her     
great beauty the men who saw her were   
astonished 7stupefatti74    444 #8,do   
you believe that she went about in the  
manner in which you  paint her8 ,i say  
to you that she went dressed as a poor  
woman6'#bbh    ,but he who taught for   
choice beneath the damask rose in the   
centre  of his cloister admitted roses  
and lilies where he denounced rubies    
and pearls4 ,flowers alone survived as  
emblems or as votive decoration  even   
after the puritanical current towards   
the ideal set in motion  by the great   
,dominican became merged in the         
over-sweeping wave of  classicism--and  
even those late artists who dispensed   
with every other  convention for the    
expression of the abstract1 placed a    

lily in the  angel ,gabriel's hand4     
,modern art has adopted the tradition   
and in the #8,ecce ,ancilla ,domini'  of
 ,rossetti#bbi the wingless angel       
carries a stalk of lilies4 ,there  is   
also a white lily embroidered upon the  
strip of material which is  stretched   
upon an embroidery frame at the foot of 
,mary's bed4    ,the angel brings the   
lily to the ,virgin in recognition of   
her perfect  purity1 the transcendent   
quality by which alone she found favour 
with  ,god4 ,through it tremendous      
honour came upon her1 and by the        
marvellous  nature of that honour she   
was eternally bound to her virginity4   
#8,mary ,virgin1 ever a ,virgin4' ,in a 
very charming picture by ,filippo       
,lippi1#bcj ,mary1 with bent head1 and  
fully understanding the grave           
significance of the gift1 reverently    
accepts the lily which the angel        
,gabriel places in her hand4    ,in     
another ,annunciation by ,filippo       
,lippi1#bca a second angel1 peeping     

through the entry behind ,gabriel1 also 
carries a lily1 but it is a  fancy which
 seems to have no particular            
significance and rather impairs  the    
dignity of the subject4    ,so          
constantly did painters and sculptors of
 the ,annunciation place  a lily in the 
archangel ,gabriel's hand that it       
gradually became his  special attribute1
 which he wore1 as a knight did his     
crest1 to  distinguish him from other   
angels and archangels4    ,in the       
apocryphal ,book of ,tobit is the story 
of ,tobias1 who was  accompanied by the 
angel ,raphael on the famous journey    
which he took  to recover his father's  
money1 a journey in which he not only   
caught  the fish whose gall was to cure 
his father's blindness1 but also found  
a wife4 ,it is the only subject from the
 ,apocrypha which now decorates         
,christian churches1 and owes this grace
 to the force with which  the story1    
despite its fantastic details1          
illustrates the constant  watchfulness  

of ,heaven over those still on their    
earthly pilgrimage4  ,in the fifteenth  
century it was a favourite subject for a
 votive  picture on behalf of one about 
to take a journey4 ,the young man1      
rather  helpless in his youth and       
inexperience1 protected by the strong1  
wise  guardian angel1 was a group       
painted with the greatest pleasure1 and 
the fascination of ideal1 sexless       
beauty1 of curved1 sweeping wings1      
tempted to an amplification of the      
subject1 and though the ,book of  ,tobit
 mentions one archangel only--          
#8444 ,the affable archangel            
,raphael2 the sociable spirit that      
deign'd      ,to travel with ,tobias1   
and secured      ,his marriage with the 
seven-times wedded maid--'#bcb    there 
suddenly sprang up in ,florence a       
short-lived fashion for  depicting      
,tobias with three archangels4    ,there
 are two of these pictures in           
,florence2#bcc others at  ,verona1#bcd  
,turin#bce and ,munich4#bcf ,in each    

,michael is armed1  ,raphael grasps     
,tobias by the hand1 and ,gabriel       
carries a branch of  lilies4    ,but the
 four figures in a row make an awkward  
composition1 and  stiffness is avoided  
at the expense of dignity4 ,a mincing   
angel1 too  conscious of his pretty     
wings and daintily-held lily1 is the    
,gabriel of  the best known of these    
pictures1 attributed of late years to   
,botticini4    ,illustration3      ,jrg 
,brue    ,,the ,,columbine ,,of ,,the   
,,seven ,,gifts    7,berlin7            
,illustration3          ,the ,master of 
,flmalle          ,photo ,hanfstngl     
,,saint ,,barbara ,,with ,,the ,,royal  
,,lily    7,prado7    ,the lily is1 of  
course1 here used non-symbolically1     
merely to  distinguish one archangel    
from another1 and for the same reason   
that  ,michael is given the sword and   
frequently the scales for the weighing  
of souls1 ,raphael the traveller's staff
 and gourd1 or1 when with  ,tobias1 a   
small box4 ,the angel ,gabriel's primary

 function is to be  the herald of ,god1 
as it is ,michael's to lead the hosts of
 ,heaven1  and ,raphael's to guide the  
straying4 ,therefore ,gabriel carries   
the  herald's wand1 now developed to a  
lily1 ,michael the sword1 and ,raphael  
the staff4    ,thus ,gabriel1 when in   
company with other archangels and       
angels1  carries the lily to establish  
his identity1 but where1 as in a        
,coronation#bcg or an ,enthroned        
,madonna1 he stands with ,saint ,michael
  guarding the throne1 he usually holds 
also a scroll with #8,,ave ,,maria'     
upon it1 showing that the main function 
of the lily is to proclaim the          
spotlessness of the ,virgin4    ,a      
rather charming treatment of the        
,annunciation lily1 which originated  in
 ,germany1 is to strew the lily heads   
upon the floor4 ,they then have  the    
appearance of having fallen from ,heaven
 in a shower1 like those  falling roses1
 symbols of divine love1 which were so  
often painted  by the artists of ,italy 

and ,spain4 #8,the ,master of the       
,sterzinger  ,altar'#bch introduces     
seven of these lily blooms and buds1    
snapped  off short1 and with only an    
inch or two of stalk1 into his fine     
,annunciation painted in #adeh1 and1    
satisfied with these1 he uses lilies    
neither in a vase nor in the angel's    
hand4 ,other artists of his day  liked  
the fancy well1 but wished to keep the  
mystic vase1 so1 to avoid  doubling the 
symbol1 they turned the fallen flowers  
to roses1 or roses  and carnations1     
symbols of the divine favour which had  
fallen upon the  maid4 ,it was a        
graceful exposition of the underlying   
meaning of the  scene1 symbolically     
right and delightful in pictorial       
effect4          ,,xvi    ,,the         
,,flowers ,,of ,,the ,,divinity         
,the only growing thing which is used to
 represent the ,trinity in ,unity  is   
the trefoil or shamrock4 ,saint ,patrick
 is said to have plucked from  the      
ground a leaf of shamrock and by it     

illustrated to the heathen  ,irish the  
mystery of the ,triune ,godhead4        
,architectural details1 and  more       
especially windows1 based upon the      
trefoil's form1 are common in  ,gothic  
churches4 ,in pictorial art it is rather
 unusual as an emblem1  but ,michael    
,angelo1 who so rarely used symbolical  
detail1 paints the  triple-leaved plant 
and no other leaf or flower in the      
foreground of  his ,holy ,family4#bci   
,but though the trefoil is the only     
direct floral emblem of the ,trinity1   
distinct reference to it is often found 
in the triple grouping of  the flowers  
which are the attributes of the         
,saviour4 ,for instance1  the three     
carnations of divine love in the crystal
 vase before the  ,infant ,christ in    
,hugo van der ,goes' #8,adoration of the
 ,shepherds'2#bdj  the three lilies 7one
 in bud7 which the angel holds in       
,crivelli's  #8,annunciation'2#bda and  
the three irises in the ,annunciation of
  ,pesello4#bdb    ,there is no plant or

 flower used as the emblem of ,god the  
,father4 ,from  time to time the ,hebrew
 metaphor of the ,burning ,bush has been
 used  pictorially to indicate ,his     
presence2 but as early as the fifth     
century  this image was appropriated to 
express the purity of the ,virgin       
,mother1  enveloped but not consumed by 
the divine love4    ,in the ,catacombs  
and on many medival crucifixes the      
,person of ,god the  ,father is         
indicated by a hand issuing from the    
clouds and holding a  wreath of laurel1 
palm or olive4 ,but the wreath in this  
case is not the  attribute of the       
,divine ,father1 but the attribute of   
him above whose  head the wreath is     
held4 ,in the ,catacombs it is the      
martyr's crown2 on  the crucifix it is  
,christ's crown of victory over sin4    
,as already mentioned1 the lily of      
purity and the olive branch of peace    
are occasionally used as the attributes 
of ,god the ,holy ,ghost4 ,as ,his      
direct emblem the dove only is employed1

 since ,scripture states that  ,he      
descended in #8the form of a dove4'     
,sometimes in ,french manuscripts  of   
the fourteenth century ,he is           
represented in human form1 but such     
representations are seldom found        
elsewhere4    ,poetry and art have      
enwreathed the entire life of ,jesus    
,christ with  flowers4    #8,the        
,annunciation was the festival of early 
spring4 ,christ1 whose birth  was       
foretold by ,gabriel1 was a flower that 
blossomed from the stem  of ,jesse2 ,his
 ,mother1 to whom the imagery of the    
,song of ,solomon was  applied1 was a   
flower of the fields and a 8lily of the 
valley40 ,and the  place where the      
,annunciation occurred had a name1      
,nazareth1 which in  ,hebrew1 according 
to an old but incorrect interpretation1 
means flower4  ,such a meeting of       
associations was naturally not left     
unutilized by  the theological authors4 
,it was often set forth in sermons how  
the  promise of the birth of ,god as man

 was connected with the spring's        
promise of flowers and fruit4 ,s4       
,bernard in particular worked out the   
flower symbolism of the ,annunciation in
 poetic and ingenious conceits4  ,the   
flower1 he said1 had been willing1 at   
the time of flowering1 to  be born of a 
flower in a flower--i4e41 ,jesus        
permitted ,himself to  be announced to  
,mary at ,nazareth in the spring3 8,flos
 nasci voluit de  flore1 in flore1 et   
floris tempore40'#bdc    ,so we find a  
stem of lilies or a vase of flowers as  
the symbol of ,his  miraculous birth1   
and on the morning of ,his nativity     
rejoicing angels  carried olive branches
 as they sang of peace on earth and     
goodwill  towards men4 ,a helpless      
,infant1 ,he lay upon the ground to     
receive the  ,adoration of ,his ,mother 
and of angels1 among roses of love and  
lilies  of purity1 or in grass thick    
with the daisies1 violets and           
strawberries  which told of ,his        
innocence1 humility and righteousness4  

,as a boy1 growing perhaps to a         
consciousness of ,his mission1 in ,spain
  ,he is found with thorny roses1       
wounding ,himself sometimes with the    
thorns of grief and suffering springing 
from ,his divine love itself4    ,early 
devotional art left ,christ's life with 
its miracles and parables  and passed to
 ,his ,passion4 ,for the entry into     
,jerusalem there is  the palm of victory
 and the olive branch of peace4 ,in the 
,ecce ,homo  ,he wears the ,crown of    
,thorns1 and the reed as a sceptre is   
placed in  ,his hand4 ,for the          
,crucifixion ,signorelli painted below  
the ,cross many  pleasant flowers1 among
 which are noticeable the violet and    
daisy4  ,but the ,northern schools      
reserved for this scene the bitter herbs
 and  flowers1 the willow1 dandelion and
 thistle4 ,these weeds1 carefully       
chosen and painted with marvellous      
minuteness1 fill the foreground in  the 
,crucifixion by an unnamed ,german      
master in the ,national ,gallery4    ,in

 the last scenes of all of the divine   
tragedy there is no symbol but  the     
,crown of ,thorns1 and to the           
,resurrection no flower is specially    
dedicated4 ,but in the ,thomas          
,altar1#bdd by the ,master of the       
,bartholomew ,altar1 the newly-risen    
,christ is shown1 and round ,his feet1  
upon the marble step1 are lying blossoms
 of violets and daisies and  seven heads
 of the holy columbine4    ,the passion 
flower does not appear in art before the
 seventeenth  century4 ,it was unknown  
in ,europe before the ,spanish conquest 
of ,south  ,america1 and it is said that
 when the ,jesuits brought home reports 
of  the miraculous flower bearing the   
insignia of the ,passion1 which grew    
from tree to tree in the forests of the 
new land1 their tale was first  received
 as a pious invention4 ,but the plant   
itself at length arrived1  and early in 
the eighteenth century ,francesco       
,trevisani painted a  delightful little 
picture#bde less noticed than it        

deserves to be4  ,the ,virgin1 who is   
very sweet and gentle1 both in pose and 
expression1  sits sewing beside a table 
on which is a vase of roses and lilies4 
,the  little ,christ1 who has apparently
 just run in from the garden1 points    
out to ,his ,mother1 with a most        
childlike gesture1 the little thorny    
crown upon the passion flower which ,he 
holds in ,his hand4 ,the picture1  which
 is not unlike the work of ,andrea del  
,sarto in miniature1 is  wonderfully    
attractive4          ,,xvii    ,,the    
,,flowers ,,of ,,the ,,virgin           
,there were many flowers used by the    
early writers as similes of the         
,virgin4       #8,thou art the myrtle   
and the blooming rose of ,paradise1     
,thou art the fairness of heaven1 and   
,the feast-day of our hearts1'    wrote 
,saint ,petrus ,damiani in the eleventh 
century4    ,in ,saint ,bernard we read3
    #8,mary is the violet of humility1  
the lily of chastity and the rose of    
charity4'    ,conrad von ,wrtzburg      

compares her to the balsam of purest    
perfume1  the fairest among flowers1 the
 cedar of ,lebanon1 the cypress of      
,zion1  fennel and mint1 the white lily1
 the early flowering almond1 the        
healing mandrake1 the musk-flower1 the  
evergreen myrtle1 the low nard1  the    
thornless rose in the dew of heaven1 the
 noble frankincense and  the hidden     
violet1 and further addresses her as    
#8,a living ,paradise      ,of grandly  
coloured flowers4'#bdf    ,but though   
poets1 and particularly ,german poets1  
ranged widely through  the fields in    
their search for blossoms which by their
 beauty or by  their healing virtues    
were fit to symbolize the ,virgin1 the  
early  artists painted very few4 ,in    
those mystical ,enclosed ,gardens which 
so  charmed the ,germans of the         
fifteenth century1 only a few plants    
appear4  ,the lily1 which is often the  
lily of the valley1 the rose1 the       
violet1  and the strawberry1 are the    
most usual4 ,later the iris1 the royal  

lily1  was added1 and sometimes the     
seven-blossomed columbine4 ,occasionally
  in ,italy the jasmine and the daisy   
are also found in the vase beside  her1 
but all other flowers of the garden and 
field1 the tulip1 anemone1  ranunculus1 
primrose1 daffodil1 dahlia1 etc41 were  
rigidly excluded4    ,it will be noticed
 that1 with the exception of the rose1  
all the  flowers of the ,virgin are     
white or blue1 her own colours4 ,an     
exception1 which is unique1 is the      
golden sunflower springing from her     
halo on a twelfth-century window in the 
,church of ,st ,rmi at ,reims1 and  even
 that is not exclusively hers1 since    
,saint ,john1 on the other side1  bears 
the same flower4 ,white and blue are the
 two colours which are  held most sacred
 in the ,christian ,church4 ,white1     
symbol of the ,supreme  ,being and of   
the ,eternal ,truth1 is used in the     
ornaments for the feast  of ,our ,lord  
and of the ,virgin1 for it announces    
loving-kindness1  virginity and         

charity4#bdg ,blue is the symbol of     
chastity1 innocence  and candour4 ,only 
one yellow flower is used symbolically1 
and that only  in scenes from the       
,passion1 by artists of the early       
,flemish and ,german  schools4 ,it is   
the dandelion1 and its significance is1 
apparently1  bitterness of grief4       
,the white lily1 which symbolizes       
purity1 is found chiefly in pictures  of
 the ,annunciation1 but it has been     
introduced in many other scenes  from   
the life of the ,virgin4 ,in the first  
exhibited painting by  ,rossetti1       
entitled #8,the ,girlhood of ,mary      
,virgin1'#bdh the ,virgin1 in  grey     
robes1 is seated at a curiously-shaped  
frame embroidering a white  lily upon a 
ground of red material4 ,the flower she 
is copying grows  in a vase beside her  
and an angel with rose-coloured wings   
waters it4  ,st ,anne stands near1 and  
in the background ,joachim trims a      
trellised  vine upon which the ,holy    
,dove is perched4 ,in the #8,ecce       

,ancilla  ,domini'#bdi of ,rossetti1    
this same strip of embroidery1 now      
finished1  hangs beside the bed4    ,the
 older artists paint no lily in the     
early scenes of the ,virgin's  life2 it 
first appears at the ,annunciation1     
where it was used so  repeatedly that it
 became in itself the symbol of the     
miraculous  birth of ,our ,lord4 ,giotto
 brings it forward in the               
#8,visitation4'#bej  ,elizabeth1        
hurrying from the house to meet the     
,virgin1 passes beneath a  portico on   
which blooms a large vase of lilies4    
,there are endless pictures representing
 the ,virgin seated with the  ,holy     
,child1 in which a vase of lilies is    
placed as a votive offering  before her 
feet1 or lilies are held by attendant   
angels4 ,one of the  earliest of these  
pictures is the #8,enthroned            
,madonna'#bea of ,giotto4  ,two angels  
offer golden vases filled with lilies   
and roses4 ,the angels  have searched   
,paradise for its most precious flowers 

and have chosen  those which symbolize  
purity and divine love4 ,as the symbol  
of divine  love the roses are very      
appropriately mixed with the lilies in  
the  vase which ,ghirlandaio#beb places 
on the lowest step of the ,madonna's    
throne4 ,he has also added the starry   
wild white campion which closely        
resembles jasmine1 a flower never       
definitely accorded to the ,queen of    
,heaven by the symbolists of the        
,church1 but its clear starlike form    
bringing to mind both her title ,stella 
,maris and the starry crown  described  
by ,saint ,john1 painters frequently use
 it1 and white flowers  of the same     
shape1 as her attribute4    ,but the    
appearance of the jasmine in the        
,madonna pictures may in part  be owing 
to some confusion between the jasmine   
and the myrtle1 for the  latter was     
quite definitely one of the ,virgin's   
flowers and is even  used when          
addressing her in metaphor4       #8,o  
myrtle tree of ,paradise      ,so richly

 hung with fruit4'#bec    ,dr ,anselm   
,saltzer1 ,o4,s4,b41 writes3 #8,the     
,greeks and ,romans held the  myrtle to 
be the symbol of beauty1 youth and      
marriage1 because of its  delightful    
perfume1 its evergreen leaves1 white    
blossoms and aromatic  berries4 ,in     
connection with ,mary1 the myrtle serves
 as a figure of her  purity and other   
virtues as well as of her influence over
 the unruly  impulses of the human      
soul4'#bed    ,francesco                
,franciabigio#bee places a vase of      
single white roses at the  ,virgin's    
feet4 ,double roses1 pink or red1 are   
the symbol of divine  love1 the love of 
,christ for ,his ,church upon earth1 and
 the white  single roses might be the   
symbol of the passionless love of the   
#8,mater  ,consolatrix4'    ,these      
flowers1 placed in vases before the     
,virgin1 are usually  significant and   
appropriate1 but they are really more   
votive than  symbolical4 ,the ,latins   
had brought to the shrine of ,venus the 

myrtle  and roses1 the apples and       
poppies that were sacred to her1 and    
painters  of ,central ,italy in the     
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries1 with
 the  same desire to present and        
sacrifice to their ,lady the flowers    
which  were by association peculiarly   
hers1 painted roses and lilies carefully
  and beautifully in the foreground of  
her pictures4 ,it was their gift to  the
 ,madonna1 as the paper roses on so many
 modern altars and the wild  flowers on 
the wayside shrines are also gifts4     
,in ,northern ,italy1 particularly among
 those who studied in the school  of    
,squarcione1 fruit took the place of the
 votive flowers1 and is laid  before the
 ,madonna and the ,child1 or hung in    
garlands across the upper  part of the  
picture4    ,the painters of the        
,italian ,renaissance1 in spite of      
diligent classical  study1 were probably
 quite unconscious of this survival of  
paganism in  their work4 ,but the       
ancient traditions of the soil did crop 

up from  time to time1 in the same way  
that traces of the ,norse conception of 
,heaven as a magnificent big-game hunt  
appear occasionally beneath the         
symbolism of ,christian medival art in  
,germany4    ,north of the ,alps1 where 
the pre-,christian sacrifices had       
usually run  with blood1 there was no   
inherited love of floral offerings1 and 
we  seldom find these votive vases or   
wreaths4    ,the ,madonna attributed to 
,mabuse in the ,prado has a large vase  
of roses  placed directly below her1 but
 as a rule in ,northern art the flowers 
are introduced strictly as symbols to   
recall some aspect or function of  the  
,virgin or of her ,divine ,son4    ,in  
an #8,adoration' the surrounding angels 
bring their roses and their  lilies in  
tribute to the sinless ,child4 ,as      
,saint ,mectilda says3    #8,the lily   
figures ,his innocence and the rose ,his
 invincible  patience4'#bef    ,where   
the ,virgin is seated enthroned1        
surrounded by saints and angels1  even  

though the ,holy ,child is upon her     
knee1 all symbols except that  which the
 ,child holds in ,his hand refer again  
to her4    ,it is rare1 however1 that1  
when holding the ,child1 she carries her
 own  attribute herself4 ,usually the   
symbols1 flowers or fruit1 are held by  
angels or laid beside her throne1 but in
 the large #8,enthroned ,madonna'  of   
,signorelli1#beg a painter who showed   
some originality in his use  of symbols1
 ,mary encircles the ,child with her    
right arm and in her left  hand holds a 
handsome stalk of lilies4 ,that the     
flower refers to the  wonder of her own 
purity in conjunction with her          
motherhood1 and not to  the ,child's    
sinlessness1 is proved by the words on  
the scroll of the  ,prophet ,isaiah1 who
 stands below gazing up at her with     
rapture3                #8,behold a     
,virgin shall conceive and bear a ,son4'
    ,vasari says of this work3#beh #8,in
 his old age he painted a picture for   
the brotherhood of ,san ,girolamo in    

,arezzo1 partly at the cost of ,messer  
,niccol ,gamurrini1 doctor of laws1 and 
auditor of the ,ruota1 whose  portrait1 
taken from life1 is in the picture2 he  
is kneeling before the  ,madonna1 to    
whose protection he is recommended by   
,saint ,nicholas4 ,in  the same work are
 figures of ,saint ,donatus and ,saint  
,stephen1 with that  of ,saint ,jerome1 
undraped1 beneath2 there is likewise a  
figure of ,david  singing to a psaltery 
with two prophets who are seen1 by the  
written  scrolls which they hold in     
their hands1 to be engaged in a         
conference  on the conception of the    
,virgin4'    ,in another altar-piece by 
,signorelli#bei it is the ,infant       
,christ who  carries the lily1 the      
symbol of ,his own sinlessness4 ,in this
 picture  all the symbolism refers to   
the ,holy ,child1 not to the ,virgin1   
which is  unusual in an #8,enthroned    
,madonna4' ,but the scroll upon the     
cross of the  ,baptist1 with the words  
#8,ecce ,agnus ,dei1' directs the       

devotion of the  worshipper to the ,son4
    ,in still another of ,signorelli's  
compositions#bfj the archangel  ,michael
 stands on one side of the ,madonna's   
throne with his scales for  the weighing
 of souls1 and ,gabriel upon the other  
side with a large  stalk of lilies4 ,the
 latter carries the lilies1 not merely  
as his own  attribute1 to denote that he
 is ,gabriel1 but also in greeting to   
the  ,madonna1 for in his other hand he 
holds a scroll with the words1 #8,ave   
,maria1 gratia plena4'    ,there is a   
,madonna and ,child by ,fra             
,angelico1#bfa where the ,virgin1  whose
 features are more strongly marked than 
is usual with the ,master1  holds in her
 right hand a vase in which are three   
roses and a stem of  lilies4 ,her left  
arm is round the ,child1 whose little   
hand grasps a  single lily cup4 ,the    
composition is not pleasing1 for the    
,mother is  embarrassed and encumbered  
by the great vase2 also the symbolism is
 not  very clear1 but apparently the    

roses and the lily in the vase are the  
attributes of ,mary1 while the flower in
 ,his hand refers to the ,holy  ,child4 
,there are very few flowers which are   
placed within the hand of the  ,madonna4
 ,in ,italy she sometimes holds the     
lilium candidum of the  virgin saints in
 her character of ,queen of ,virgins4   
,in ,germany  and the ,tyrol the large  
white lily is replaced by the native    
lily-of-the-valley2 and in the          
#8,madonna with the ,siskin'#bfb of     
,albert  ,drer she accepts some sprays  
of the sweet-scented white bells from   
the  hand of the tiny ,saint ,john4 ,in 
many pictures she holds a rose4 ,apart  
from symbolism1 a flower was a fitting  
thing to grace a woman's hand1  and the 
rose was considered the fairest of      
flowers4       #8,as the rose is the    
flower of flowers1      ,so is ,thy     
,house the ,house of ,houses1'    says  
the ancient inscription within ,york    
,minster1 and the rose was  the flower  
par excellence in every ,european       

country4    ,but when ,mary places the  
rose within the hand of the ,infant     
,saviour1  then it becomes ,his         
attribute with the full significance of 
divine  love1 and when she places a     
carnation between the little fingers1   
divine love is again expressed4    ,but1
 as already noticed1 in pictures of     
,florentine origin1 the rose  in the    
,virgin's hand has a special meaning1   
for it illustrates her  title of        
#8,madonna del ,fiori1' and the         
,cathedral of ,florence was  dedicated  
to #8,our ,lady of the ,flower4' ,also  
in pictures painted for  some charitable
 institution the rose or roses of the   
,virgin have still  another meaning1 for
 then1 following the interpretation of  
,raban ,maur1  they are the symbol of   
charity4 ,one picture with such roses is
 that  painted by ,giambono for the     
,congregazione di ,carit at ,fano4 ,that
  these roses are in no way the         
attribute of the ,child is shown by ,his
  attitude1 for ,his back is turned to  

the hand which holds the flowers4       
,one of the most beautiful things in the
 beautiful city of ,lucca is the  little
 chapel of ,santa ,maria della ,rosa4   
,it was originally dedicated to  ,saint 
,paul and fell into disuse1 but in the  
very earliest years of the  fourteenth  
century a fresco was discovered beneath 
the creepers which  covered the walls4  
,the fresco was even then considered to 
be extremely  ancient1 and represented  
the ,virgin with the ,child and holding 
three  roses in her hand4 ,in #acji the 
,bishop of ,lucca conceded to the       
,universit de' ,mercanti the power to   
erect on the spot a church  dedicated to
 the ,virgin of the ,rose and the       
,apostles ,peter and ,paul1  and the    
present exquisite little building was   
commenced4    ,the outside is ornamented
 with lovely arabesques of roses in low 
relief  executed in #accc1 and upon one 
angle is a statue of the ,virgin with a 
rose in her hand1 possibly by ,giovanni 
,pisano4 ,in the sacristry are the  arms

 of the confraternity figuring ,mary    
surrounded by an oval nimbus  and       
supported by two bushes1 which carry    
thirteen roses1 and form a  crown from  
which rise patriarchs and prophets4 ,the
 original fresco has  disappeared4      
,very rarely the ,virgin holds a violet4
 ,the flower is used in ,christian  art 
almost exclusively to indicate the      
humility of the ,son of ,god in  taking 
upon ,himself our human form1 and in the
 beautiful altar-piece  by ,stephen     
,lochnar#bfc the ,saviour stretches up  
,his tiny hand to  grasp the violet held
 by ,mary1 so making it ,his individual 
attribute4  ,the panel is rich in       
colouring1 but ,mary is of the simple1  
placid  type of the early ,german       
school4 ,she is gravely1 deeply happy in
 her  motherhood1 and not saddened1 as  
in ,italy1 by painful forebodings4 ,the 
,child reaches up ,his hand with a      
pretty gesture1 accepting from her1  who
 had given ,him ,his tender little body1
 also the violet1 symbol of  ,his       

humility4    ,in a picture by ,bruder   
,wilhelm#bfd the ,virgin holds a        
sweet-pea1  bearing both the flower and 
ripened pods4 ,the symbolism of the pea 
is  obscure and is not to be traced in  
,christian iconography1 though there  is
 the legend of the erbilia1 a species of
 pea which1 springing first  from the   
footsteps of ,saint ,columban1 still    
grows upon the ,tuscan  mountains4      
,possibly the symbolism may lie in the  
simultaneous flowering  and fruiting of 
the pea1 for the palm was held by some  
writers to be an  emblem of the ,virgin1
 and for the reason that #8it flowered  
and fruited  at one and the same        
time4'#bfe    ,there are three subjects1
 all connected with the ,virgin's death1
 where  lilies are once more found4     
,they are her ,ascension1 the ,giving of
  her ,girdle to ,saint ,thomas1 and her
 ,coronation4 ,in each of these the     
flower-filled tomb1 from which she has  
just arisen1 is introduced1  usually as 
the base of the composition4    ,but the

 lilies in these pictures do not refer  
to the immaculate purity  of the ,virgin
 ,mother1 but represent the souls of    
#8angels1 confessors  and virgins4' ,the
 legends which the ,legenda ,aurea      
contains were  collected by ,jacobus de 
,voragine during the last half of the   
thirteenth  century1 while the lily was 
still the flower of virgin martyrs and  
was not yet the ,madonna's lily4 ,he    
gives the following account of the      
burial of the ,virgin3    #8,the ,lord  
commanded the ,apostles that they should
 carry the body into  the valley of     
,jehoshaphat and place it in a new tomb 
that had been dug  there1 and watch     
three days beside it1 till ,he should   
return4    #8,and straightway there     
surrounded her flowers of roses1 which  
are the  blessd company of martyrs2 and 
lilies of the valley1 which are the     
bands of angels1 confessors and         
virgins4'    ,but the ,byzantine ,guide 
to ,painting1 in the paragraph entitled 
#8,how  to represent the ,assumption of 

the ,divine ,mother1' directs that in   
the  lower part of the picture there    
should be #8an open and empty tomb4'    
,there was therefore divergence of      
opinion1 and the ,church apparently     
left the artist free4    ,jacobus de    
,voragine seems to have collected the   
many floating legends  of the ,virgin1  
and with that poetic judgment which was 
the peculiar  gift of his generation1 to
 have preserved those forms particularly
  marked by sweetness or distinction of 
incident4 ,but some even of his  own    
countrymen apparently preferred the     
legend in its balder form1 for  the     
astonished ,apostles surround a bare and
 empty tomb4 ,beyond the  ,alps1 where  
the ,legenda ,aurea never had much      
influence1 the tomb is  almost          
invariably empty1 and indeed all three  
subjects are rare in the  ,north1 though
 the death of the ,virgin is frequently 
represented4    ,the majority of        
,italian painters1 however1 gladly      
seized the pretty  detail1 and the      

,virgin's tomb is usually flower-filled4
 ,but the  painters of the high         
,renaissance did not keep strictly to   
the symbolism  of the legend4 ,there is 
a beautiful fresco by ,sodoma1#bff in   
which the  ,virgin1 dignified and       
lovely1 ascends from a tomb brimming    
over with  roses1 and from among them   
springs one mystic lily4                
,raphael1#bfg too1 gives a single lily  
rising from among the roses1  and both  
he and ,sodoma seem to have adopted the 
later fashion of  considering the lily  
as exclusively the ,virgin ,mary's      
flower1 and  instead of serried lilies1 
representing bands of angels and virgin 
saints1 they paint one only flower1     
emblem of the ,queen of ,virgins  rising
 to ,heaven attended by the glowing     
souls of martyrs4    ,botticelli1#bfh on
 the other hand1 has left the roses and 
painted  lilies only1 lilies crowded    
together in such a mass of loveliness   
that  the mourners seem blinded even to 
the gorgeous bow of angels in the sky   

and to the greater wonder in the opening
 heavens high above4    ,benozzo        
,gozzoli#bfi gives the flower-filled    
tomb1 but neglects the  symbolism of the
 legend1 for to the roses he adds       
daisies and jasmine4  ,it is simply a   
collection of the flowers sacred to the 
,virgin4    ,giulio ,romano1#bgj in the 
,madonna di ,monteluce1 paints neither  
roses  nor lilies1 merely small1        
indeterminate blossoms1 mauve1 blue and 
yellow4    ,on one panel1#bga of the    
fifteenth century1 which represents     
#8,the  ,giving of the ,girdle to ,saint
 ,thomas1' cut roses and lilies lie upon
  the top of the closed tomb1 which     
seems a misapprehension of the  legend1 
but possibly the artist merely intended 
to paint the flowers  usually used as   
attributes of the ,virgin--the rose of  
love and the lily  of purity--without   
any reference to the story as told in   
the ,golden  ,legend4    ,but though the
 lilies of the ,virgin's tomb represent 
angels and virgin  saints1 in those     

pictures of her ,coronation or          
,assumption1 where no  tomb is shown1   
the flower is the symbol of her own     
purity4 ,through her  perfect purity she
 has attained the crown1 therefore it is
 with stems  of white lilies that the   
rose-crowned angels hail her ,queen4    
,fra ,filippo ,lippi#bgb paints her     
kneeling to receive the crown from  ,god
 the ,father3       #8,ringed by a      
bowery1 flowery angel-brood      ,lilies
 and vestments and white faces1 sweet   
,as puff on puff of grated              
orris-root4'#bgc    ,a child-angel holds
 a scroll with the words3               
#8,is perfecit opus1'    and the        
archangel ,gabriel with a lily1 painted 
in a small lunette above  the throne1   
recalls the first beginning of the work 
now perfected2  while before the throne1
 and thick on either side1 is a waving  
grove of  large white lilies1 each stalk
 held by an adoring angel4    ,the      
devotional figure of the ,virgin known  
as the #8,immaculate  ,conception' is   

usually presented as the woman with     
#8the moon under  her feet1 and upon her
 head a crown of twelve stars2' four or 
five  attendant child-angels each carry 
a symbol of her virtues1 and the  lily  
is always prominent among them4    ,this
 particular aspect of the ,virgin was   
especially popular in ,spain1  where    
,murillo was its finest exponent4 ,the  
flowers of an ,immaculate  ,conception  
are the rose1 lily1 olive and palm1     
signifying love1 purity1  peace and     
victory4 ,sometimes the iris1 the royal 
lily1 is added2  sometimes it replaces  
the lilium candidum4 ,jos ,antolines#bgd
 paints  the iris only4    ,in the      
chapter on #8,garlands of ,roses' we    
remarked the thorns which in  the mystic
 ,enclosed ,gardens of ,germany         
illustrate the verse3    #8,as a lily   
among thorns1 so is my love among the   
daughters4'    ,with the closing of the 
fifteenth century these thorn trellises 
passed from ,northern art1 but the      
application of the metaphor to the      

,virgin still persisted in ,northern    
theology1 and since the ,immaculate     
,conception had replaced the ,hortus    
,conclusus as a devotional subject1  it 
is as an attribute of the ,virgin1 risen
 to glory1 that we find the  thorns1 and
 in an ,immaculate ,conception by       
,seghers#bge a child-angel  flutters at 
the ,madonna's feet with a lily enclosed
 in branches of  thorns4    ,in the     
#bdth chapter of ,ecclesiasticus there  
is a description of  ,wisdom with her   
attributes in which the ,roman ,catholic
 ,church has  seen a prefiguring of the 
,virgin ,mary4 ,some pictorial          
renderings of  the ,immaculate          
,conception make special reference to   
this1 notably the  large altar-piece1 of
 unknown authorship1 but believed to    
date from the  end of the fifteenth     
century1 which was painted for the      
,church of ,s4  ,francesco in           
,lucca4#bgf    ,in the upper part of the
 picture ,christ is seen seated1 and    
holding out  above the kneeling ,virgin 

the sceptre of ,his royal favour4 ,above
 the  sceptre is a scroll with the words
 from the ,book of ,esther3 #8,not for  
thee was this law made1 but for all     
mankind4' ,she alone was immaculate4    
,around there is a wreath of angels4    
,below stand ,king ,david1 ,king        
,solomon1 ,saint ,augustine1 ,saint     
,anselm and ,saint ,anthony of ,padua4  
,behind these figures stretches a       
charming garden4 ,against the horizon   
are the cypresses of ,mount ,zion1 the  
cedar of ,lebanon1 the palm tree  of    
,cades1 and also a pomegranate laden    
with fruit4 ,midway there is a  rose    
hedge thick with the roses of ,jericho4 
,a terrace runs across the  garden1 and 
upon the parapet are two stone vases1   
one labelled ,mirra  and the other      
,balsamum4    ,these trees and plants   
are the trees and plants to which       
,wisdom1 and  therefore ,mary1 is       
likened in ,ecclesiasticus1 with the    
pomegranate of  the ,canticles4         
#8,quasi cedrus exaltata sum in ,libano1

 et quasi cypressus in ,monte ,sion3    
quasi palma exaltata sum in ,cades1 et  
quasi plantatio rosae in ,jericho3  444 
,sicut cinnamomum et balsamum           
aromatizans odorem dedi3 quasi myrrha   
electa dedi suavitatem odoris4#bgg      
#8,emissiones tuae paradisus malorum    
punicorum cum pomorum  fructibus4'#bgh  
,,xviii    ,,the ,,lily ,,of ,,the      
,,saints      ,the ancient ,hebrews took
 the lily as the symbol of chastity4    
,the name  of the chaste woman of the   
apocryphal story was ,susannah1 in      
,hebrew  ,shusan1 which signifies a     
lily4 ,the derivation was not forgotten 
by  ,german artists1 for a lily is      
usually conspicuous in the elaborate    
garden scenes in which they set this    
subject1 though the ,italians  reserved 
the flower for the ,madonna and the     
saints of the monastic  orders4         
,originally the lily was given to all   
virgin saints1 and it was  considered   
their special attribute before the      
flower was particularly  associated with

 the ,virgin ,mary4       #8,jesus1     
corona virginum      ,qui pergis inter  
lilia      ,septis choreis virginum     
,sponsus decorus gloria4'    ,in the    
,catacombs there are no virgin martyrs  
depicted1 and the few  lilies found     
there represent merely the flora of     
,heaven with the  general significance  
of celestial bliss4 ,in the early       
mosaics1 too1  both in ,ravenna and     
,rome1 the lilies are decorative and the
 virgins  carry crowns of victory4      
,but as early as the ninth century the  
lily is used pictorially as the         
indication of virginity in the famous   
,beneditional of ,saint ,ethelwold  of  
,winchester4#bgi ,the ,saxon queen1     
,saint ,ethelreda 7,saint ,audry71  who 
leads the choir of virgin saints1 wears 
the ,benedictine habit1 is  crowned1 and
 holds in one hand the gospel and in the
 other a lily4 ,she  founded ,ely       
,cathedral and1 at least after her      
second marriage1 lived as  a nun4 ,the  
miniature was executed in #ihj4    ,in  

the ,church of ,s4 ,chiara in ,naples   
there is a picture executed in  mosaic  
of the early ,christian martyr1 ,saint  
,reparata4 ,the mosaic1 which  is of the
 thirteenth century1 is attributed to   
,cavallini1 and the saint  has a lily by
 her side4    ,but after the thirteenth 
century the lily is given almost        
exclusively  to saints of the monastic  
orders1 the higher distinction of the   
palm  being awarded to the martyrs4     
#8,for1' says ,durandus1 #8the          
,martyrdom  taketh precedence of the    
,virginity2 because it is a sign of the 
more  perfect love3 according as the    
,truth saith1 8,greater love hath no man
  than this1 that a man lay down his    
life for his friends4'0    ,occasionally
 these early saints are given the lily  
in addition to the  palm4 ,mantegna     
paints ,saint ,euphemia with a lily in  
the right hand and  a palm in the       
left4#bhj ,but usually they have the    
palm alone4 ,the  lilies of ,saint      
,cecilia allude to the celestial lilies 

of her legend4     propos of ,saint     
,cecilia1 ,chaucer's very charming1 if  
fanciful1  derivation of her name may be
 recalled3       #8,first wol ,i you the
 name of ,sainte ,cecilie      ,expoune 
as men may in hire storie see3      ,it 
is to sayn in ,english1 ,hevens lilie1  
,for pure chasteness of virginitee1     
,or for she whitnesse had of honestee1  
,and grene of conscience1 and of good   
fame      ,the swote savour1 lilie was  
her name4'    ,since the lily was       
appropriated by the celibates of the    
,church another  symbol had to be found 
for the chastity of those still in the  
world1  and for the virtue of the       
secular the unicorn was chosen4 ,the    
medival  legend ran that the unicorn was
 of all created beasts the fiercest and 
most difficult to capture4 ,but should a
 maid be in his path he would  lie down 
with his head upon her lap and then the 
hunter could take him  with great ease4 
#8,the ,triumph of ,chastity' with the  
#8,triumph of ,love' as a pendant  were 

rather favourite subjects in the        
fifteenth century in ,italy1            
particularly as a decoration of the     
elaborate bridal chests or  cassoni1    
then in vogue4 #8,the ,triumph of       
,chastity' of ,liberale da  ,verona#bha 
is typical4 ,the white-clothed figure of
 a young woman  stands upon a car drawn 
by unicorns1 while behind follows a     
rejoicing  crowd4 ,she holds a          
cornucopia but no lily appears4    ,on  
the shutters in the ,hall of            
,heliodorus1 in the ,vatican1 there is a
  very beautiful ,renaissance design in 
which the lily and the unicorn are      
united1 but usually in ,italy the lily  
was kept as an ecclesiastical and  the  
unicorn as a secular symbol4    ,in     
,german art both lily and unicorn are   
held to be symbols of the  ,virgin's    
purity1 and in the fourteenth and       
fifteenth centuries there  were many    
tapestries and embroideries executed in 
the convents  illustrating that strange 
allegorical version of the ,annunciation

 known  as #8,the ,hunting of the       
,unicorn4' ,but the unicorn is never    
associated  with the monastic saints1   
and indeed1 in ,northern art1 monastic  
saints  themselves are rather rare4     
,the lily was1 therefore1 latterly the  
symbol of monastic celibacy4  ,there is 
a curious allegorical picture of ,saint 
,francis by ,sassetta4  ,the present    
owner1 ,mr ,b4 ,behrenson1 describes it 
thus3    #8,over the sea and the land1  
into the golden heavens1 towers the     
figure of the blessed ,francis1 his face
 transfigured with ecstasy1  his arms   
held out in his favourite attitude of   
the cross1 his feet  firmly planted on a
 prostrate warrior in golden panoply4   
,cherubim and  ,seraphim1 with fiery    
wings and deep crescent halos1 form     
behind the  saint a nimbus framing a    
glory of gold and azure1 as dazzling as 
the  sky and as radiant as the sun4     
,overhead1 on opalescent cloudlets1     
float ,poverty in her patched dress1    
looking up with grateful devotion1      

,obedience in her rose-red robe with a  
yoke about her neck and her hands       
crossed on her breast1 and ,chastity in 
white1 holding a lily4'#bhb    ,all     
three maidens are attractive1 and       
,chastity the prettiest of the  three1  
unlike the immured #8,castitas' of      
,giotto1#bhc whose guards1 with  surely 
unnecessary vigour1 drive off #8,amor'  
with pitch-forks4    ,the two men not in
 holy orders1 who are permitted to carry
 the lily1  are ,saint ,john the        
,baptist and ,saint ,joseph4 ,the       
former1 even if he  took no formal vow  
of celibacy1 is looked upon as the first
 of the  ,christian anchorites1 and the 
lily of ,saint ,joseph is the symbol of 
the  self-abnegation of his married     
life4    ,the history of the marriage of
 the ,virgin ,mary is found in the      
apocryphal #8,gospel of the ,birth of   
,mary1' translated by ,saint ,jerome    
and abridged in the ,catalogus          
,sanctorum of ,peter de ,natalibus4     
#8,and when ,mary was fourteen years of 

age the ,high ,priest commanded  that   
the virgins brought up in the temple    
should return home and be  wedded       
according to law4 ,and all obeyed except
 ,mary1 who replied that  she might not1
 as her parents had dedicated her to the
 ,lord and she  herself had vowed her   
virginity to ,god4 ,and the ,high       
,priest1 being  perplexed by ,mary's vow
 7which ought to be kept7 on the one    
hand1 and  the introduction of a new    
custom in ,israel on the other1 summoned
 the  elders together to consult upon   
the matter4 ,and as they prayed1 a voice
  came from the sanctuary commanding    
that every man of the house of  ,david1 
who was not wedded1 should place his rod
 on the altar1 and he  whose rod should 
bud1 and the ,holy ,spirit descend upon 
it in the form  of a dove1 according to 
the prophecy of ,isaiah1 should be the  
spouse of  ,mary4    #8,and there was   
among the rest a certain ,joseph of the 
,house of ,david1  an old man and a     
widower1 and who had sons and grandsons4

 ,and thinking  it unseemly that an aged
 man should marry a tender virgin1 when 
the  others presented their rods he     
withheld his own4 ,and no miracle       
appearing1 the ,high ,priest inquired of
 the ,lord1 who answered that he  only  
to whom the ,virgin was to be espoused  
had not presented his rod4  ,so ,joseph 
was brought forward1 and presented his  
rod1 and straightway  it budded1 and the
 dove descended from heaven and settled 
upon it4 ,and  it was clear to all men  
that ,mary was to be his wife4'    ,in  
one of the earliest representations#bhd 
which we have of the  #8,marriage of the
 ,virgin' ,joseph holds a stalk of      
lilium candidum with  a single flower at
 its summit1 on which is poised the holy
 dove4 ,thus  ,giotto1 always thoughtful
 and original in his symbolism1 modified
 the  legendary flowering staff to the  
flower which should symbolize ,saint    
,joseph's wedded life with the ,virgin4 
,but the great majority of artists have 
followed the legend more  closely4      

,taddeo ,gaddi#bhe gives a bunch of     
leaves at the staff's  top1 just such   
leaves as would sprout from a staff of  
ash4 ,there is  only one tiny bud upon  
the bare stick above which the dove     
hovers in  the #8,marriage' attributed  
to ,fiorenzo di ,lorenzo1#bhf and       
,gaudenzio  ,ferrari#bhg paints a       
scarcely-budded staff4    ,sometimes in 
the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries 
the staff of  ,saint ,joseph bears red  
or pink flowers resembling the oleander1
 and  to-day the country people in      
,tuscany call the oleander ,il ,mazzo di
 ,san  ,giuseppe1 that is1 #8,the ,staff
 of ,saint ,joseph4'    ,northern art1  
uninfluenced by the ,legenda ,aurea1    
gives ,saint ,joseph  no flowering      
staff4 ,lucas van ,leyden#bhh paints him
 as an entirely  unidealized workman    
with tools upon his back but places the 
lily in his  hand4 ,and he has also a   
lily in the #8,holy ,family' of         
,geertgen tot ,sint  ,jans1#bhi though  
in the many representations of #8,the   

,adoration of the  ,magi' in ,north     
,germany and the ,netherlands he is     
undistinguished by any  attribute4      
,after the seventeenth century ,saint   
,joseph began to have a status of  his  
own as patron of married virtue4 ,single
 figures of him appear  carrying a lily1
 not a staff1 and in the ecclesiastical 
art of the  present day he carries      
sometimes the ,child-,christ and        
sometimes a book1  but also invariably a
 lily4 ,a large oleograph which hangs in
 the ,church  of the ,angels at ,la     
,verna shows the ,child-,christ crowning
 him with a  wreath of lilies4          
,occasionally the lily is given to young
 girls who are neither saints  nor      
martyrs4 ,there is an engraving from a  
gold medal in the royal  library at     
,windsor of the ,empress ,leonora of    
,portugal4 ,the portrait  is            
half-length1 standing1 with long hair1  
beneath the arched imperial  crown1 and 
she holds in her hand a lily stem with  
two flowers and three  buds4 ,it is     

inscribed3                              
#8,leonora ,augusta ,frederici ,imp4    
,uxor4'    ,she was the daughter of     
,king ,edward of ,portugal and wife of  
,frederick  of ,austria1 also           
great-grand-daughter of ,john of ,gaunt4
 ,it is a pretty  figure1 childish but  
dignified4 ,the long hair1 ,mr ,augustus
 ,franks  points out1#bij is generally  
looked upon as the mark of a virgin     
bride1 and it is explained by her       
coronation having taken place before    
the consummation of the marriage4 ,the  
lily also1 like the flowing hair1       
proclaims her maidenhood4    ,but1 as a 
rule1 the lilium candidum is strictly a 
flower of the  church4 ,paul            
,veronese#bia painted a ,juno with a    
white lily1 but the  flower has sharply 
turned-back petals resembling the       
turn-cap variety  and gracefully curving
 stems4    ,it was not till the         
eighteenth century that ,cipriani and   
,bartolozzi1  both members of the       
,english ,royal ,academy1 could design  

and engrave a  heathen goddess1 who1    
with one hand caressing a peacock1 held 
in the  other the traditional symbol of 
virginal innocence4    ,lilies are      
proper to all virgin saints4            
#8,liliis ,sponsus recubat1 rosisque2   
,tu1 tuo semper bene fida ,sponso       
,et rosas ,martyr simil et dedisti      
,lilia ,virgo4'    ,but some carry them 
as a special distinction4    ,among them
 ,saint ,catharine of ,siena comes      
first4 ,she was still merely  one of the
 many children of a working tanner of   
,siena1 her sanctity  unrecognized1 when
 she was sent a dream from ,heaven4 ,in 
her dream she  saw ,saint ,dominic1 who 
held in one hand a lily which1 like the 
burning  bush of ,moses1 burned but was 
not consumed4 ,with his other hand he   
offered her the black and white habit of
 the ,dominican ,tertiaries4  ,saint    
,catharine regarded the dream as a      
definite call and later joined  the     
third ,order of ,saint ,dominic4 ,she   
was a woman not only of most  saintly   

life but of wonderful force of          
character1 and intervened with          
altruistic motives and plain common     
sense in the complicated politics  of   
her day4 ,she experienced the mystical  
trances which were the crown  of        
holiness to the medival mind1 and was   
remarkable also for the  austerities and
 good works which her devoted friend and
 biographer1  ,raimondo da ,capua1      
likens to lilies4    #8,taught1 nay     
rather compelled1 by her supreme        
,teacher1 she learned  every day more   
and more both to enjoy the embraces of  
the ,celestial  ,bridegroom in the bed  
of flowers1 and to descend into the     
valley of  lilies to make herself more  
fruitful1 nor ever to leave or lessen   
the  one for the sake of the other4'    
,the most interesting of the pictures of
 ,saint ,catharine is that by  her      
friend and disciple1 ,andrea ,vanni1#bib
 and which is therefore a  portrait from
 memory1 if not from life4 ,it was      
probably painted at the  time of her    

canonization1 thirteen years after her  
death1 and shows her  as a tall1 slight 
woman with a refined enthusiastic face4 
,in her left  hand she holds the        
lilies#bic which represent the austere  
virtues of  a monastic life4 ,she is the
 most distinguished woman who wore the  
veil1  and since she is almost          
invariably represented with a lily1 the 
lilium  candidum is sometimes called    
,saint ,catharine's lily4    ,saint     
,scholastica of the ,benedictines#bid   
and ,saint ,clare of the  ,franciscans  
are also usually depicted with lilies4  
,the last1 who  styled herself the      
,little ,flower of ,saint ,francis1 has 
met with  great good fortune at the     
hands of the painters1 for two at least1
  ,simone ,martini#bie and ,luca        
,signorelli1#bif have very beautifully  
materialized her sweetness and humility4
    ,pictures which represent the mystic
 espousals of any nun usually have  the 
lily as a detail4    ,chief among the   
monks who carry the flower is ,saint    

,dominic4 ,he was  a ,spaniard and had  
all the chivalrous ,spanish devotion to 
the person  of the ,virgin4 ,it was he  
who arranged the rosary and instituted  
it  as a religious exercise4 ,he founded
 a community of preachers for the       
conversion of heretics1 which afterwards
 developed into the great  ,dominican   
order4 ,the great aim of his life was to
 guard the purity of  the ,catholic     
faith1 and to this end he hunted forth  
the ,albigenses with  his hounds of the 
,lord--the ,domini canes4 ,he is        
rewarded with the  lily which1 in his   
picture by ,bellini1#big has a          
singularly rigid stem4    ,during the   
thirteenth1 fourteenth and fifteenth    
centuries sainted  monks were           
comparatively rarely painted1 preference
 being given to  the more picturesque   
figures of the early martyrs who        
suffered under  ,roman persecutions4    
,but the earliest to appear1 and the    
most frequently  seen1 is ,saint        
,dominic4 ,duccio di ,buoninsegna puts  

him beside the  ,madonna2 ,orcagna      
painted him among the happy souls in the
 ,paradise  of ,santa ,maria ,novella4  
,and the reason why he1 rather than the 
other  great founders1 should appear in 
heavenly groups is not the fine relief  
of his black habit among the gay gowns  
of the angels1 but because  his order   
spent their gold on painted decorations 
at a time when the  ,franciscans1 vowed 
to poverty1 and the ,benedictines1      
devoted to the  making and collecting of
 books1 had less to spend on the        
encouragement  of art4 ,later1 in the   
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries1 and
 more  particularly in ,spain1 saints in
 all habits constantly appear4    ,saint
 ,dominic almost always carries a lily4 
,saint ,francis was  sufficiently       
distinguished by the stigmata1 ,saint   
,benedict by the  chalice2 but ,saint   
,dominic has a lily white as the        
austerity of his  faith4    ,saint      
,anthony of ,padua is to-day the most   
popular of all the monastic  saints4    

,his sane and gentle piety and his      
reputation for granting  little ordinary
 boons has endeared him to simple folk4 
,there seems  no particular reason why  
he1 above other saintly monks1 should be
 so  distinguished1 but when he is not  
represented with the ,infant ,christ  in
 his arms he invariably has a lily4 ,in 
the very beautiful #8,vision of  ,saint 
,anthony1' by ,murillo1#bih where the   
,holy ,child appears in a ray  of light1
 a vase of lilies stands upon the table4
 ,in another picture1  by ,annibale     
,caracci1 the ,child-,christ ,himself   
holds the lily4    ,another bearer of   
the lily is he                #8,whom   
,mary's charms      ,embellish'd1 as the
 sun the morning star'--    ,saint      
,bernard of ,clairvaux4    ,though      
opposing the doctrine of the ,immaculate
 ,conception of the  ,virgin1 he had a  
very special devotion to the ,mother of 
,christ4    ,many of his sermons1 called
 by ,henault ,chefs d'uvre de sentiment 
et  de force1 celebrate her perfections1

 and1 in particular1 the famous  series 
of sermons upon the ,bride of the ,song 
of ,solomon4    ,it is said that it was 
his love for the #8lily of the valleys' 
which so  impressed the lily form upon  
the architecture of his order1 for again
  and again in the ,gothic stone-work of
 the ,cistercian abbeys #8lily work'  is
 found4    ,the lily1 it may be         
remarked1 is given to those saints in   
holy orders  who were pious from their  
earliest youth and not to those who had 
passed a gay time in the world before   
conversion4          ,,xix    ,,the     
,,vine      ,the principal of the       
allegorical fruits is the vine4 ,it is  
one of the  most ancient emblems of     
,christ1 and is founded upon ,his own   
words1 #8,i  am the vine1 ye are the    
branches4'    ,it is seen in the        
,catacombs1 on early ,christian         
sarcophagi1 and in  the early mosaics1  
always as the emblem of ,christ or of   
,his ,church4  ,a fruiting vine very    
beautifully expresses a perfect life    

rich with  the fruits of the spirit1 and
 even were the analogy not suggested by 
,christ's own words1 it is possible that
 ,christians would have seen in  the    
tree whence comes the sacramental wine1 
emblem of the holy blood1 a  likeness to
 ,him who shed that blood4    ,where the
 cross1 the sacred monogram or the      
figure of ,christ ,himself  is          
introduced1 the vine takes a secondary  
place as emblem of the  ,christian      
,church1 and taken in this sense the    
symbolism admits of some  complication1 
twelve bunches of grapes typifying the  
twelve ,apostles1  and birds among the  
branches ,christian souls4    ,one      
example among many of its decorative and
 symbolical use is on  the gravestone of
 ,saint ,cummian1 an ,irish bishop1 who 
died a monk at  ,bobbio about the middle
 of the eighth century4 ,two vine       
branches spring  from the holy chalice  
and form a border of oval arabesques1   
one oval  enclosing fruit and leaves1   
the next framing a star alternately4 ,at

  the top1 where the two branches almost
 meet1 are two doves standing on  either
 side of the holy monogram4    ,the vine
 is the ,christian ,church1 springing   
from the chalice of  ,christ's blood2   
the fruit represents the good works of  
the righteous2  the stars which shine   
through the branches ,christian hope4   
,the doves1  by the convention of the   
,catacombs1 signify departed ,christian 
souls  adoring ,christ1 who is          
represented by the ancient star         
monogram1 formed  of the two ,greek     
letters1 ,i  ,iota1 and ,x  ,chi1       
enclosed in the circle  which is the    
symbol of eternity4 ,the gravestone was 
executed by order  of ,king ,luitprand1 
and1 by an oversight not unique among   
,christian  marbles before the twelfth  
century1 the border has been placed     
reversed round the inscription--the     
doves1 with their feet in the air1      
being at the bottom4    ,as directly    
emblematical of ,christ ,himself the    
vine received the  place of honour in   

all ,christian churches1 and1 even when 
our ,lord  was represented in ,his own  
person1 it was often there by right of  
its  secondary significance as the      
,church of ,god--#8,ye are the          
branches4' ,a  mosaic in the ,church of 
,saint ,prisca#bii shows a half-length  
figure  of ,christ framed in branches of
 vine1 and the golden branches1 often   
intricately wreathed against a dark-blue
 ground1 occur repeatedly in  the early 
mosaics4    ,but when it grew more usual
 not only to represent ,christ in ,his  
own  person but also the martyrs1 saints
 and prophets of the ,church1 the use   
of the vine became decorative rather    
than devotional1 and was chiefly        
applied to the ornamentation of         
vestments1 altar-cloths and the vessels 
used in the celebration of the          
,eucharist4 ,when1 in a painting1 the   
vine  is introduced as the emblem of    
,christ or ,his ,church1 it is usually  
in  some detail1 as in the very         
beautiful design of the ,pelican in its 

,piety among grapes and vine leaves     
behind the figure of ,god the ,father1  
,king of ,heaven1 in ,hubert van ,eyck's
 magnificent altar1 #8,the ,adoration   
of the ,lamb4'#cjj    ,botticelli1 who  
handled symbols with a depth of         
sentiment unknown  to art before1 paints
 grapes with a different significance4  
,for  him grapes1 like the ,eucharistic 
wine1 are the symbol of the ,holy       
,blood1 and in one of the most beautiful
 and unaffected of all his  pictures#cja
 an angel1 standing beside the ,infant  
,christ1 holds grapes  and corn ears1   
symbols of the sacrifice of ,his death4 
,the ,northern symbolists1 also1 took   
clustering grapes to have the same      
value as the ,eucharistic wine as an    
emblem of ,christ's blood4 ,this is     
clearly seen in a tapestry of the       
fourteenth century1 formerly in the     
,spitzer ,collection4 ,the ,infant      
,christ1 seated between the ,virgin and 
,saint ,joseph1 presses with ,his hands 
the juice of a bunch of purple  grapes  

into a chalice4    ,another ,flemish    
tapestry of the same period1 which was  
also in the same  collection1 depicts   
the ,holy ,family with ,saint ,anne4    
,mary1 from whom  the ,saviour received 
,his human blood1 hands to her ,son the 
grapes which  ,he crushes till the wine 
drops down into the cup4    ,but the    
cluster of grapes which several of the  
,flemish artists place in  the hand of  
the ,infant ,christ seems to be not only
 the emblem of the  holy blood1 but     
also1 in some sort1 the antithesis of   
the apple as the  fruit of redemption1  
which in the hand of the second ,adam   
replaces the  fruit of the ,fall4    ,in
 a picture by ,mabuse1 inscribed        
#8,verus ,deus et ,homo3 casta mater et 
,virgo1'#cjb the ,virgin offers a bunch 
of grapes to the ,infant ,christ1  who  
holds a quince1 foreshadowing that ,he  
should exchange the fruit of  ,eden1 by 
which all men died1 for the fruit of    
redemption1 by which they  shall be     
saved1 and this substitution of the     

fruit of the vine for the  apple of     
,eden became in the ,north a rather     
favourite variation of the  symbolism of
 the fruit of the ,tree of ,knowledge of
 ,good and ,evil4          ,,xx    ,,the
 ,,fruit ,,of ,,the ,,tree ,,of         
,,knowledge      ,the ,scriptures give  
no indication whatever as to the size1  
shape or  colour of the ,fruit of the   
,tree of ,knowledge of ,good and ,evil  
which  grew in the midst of ,eden1 and  
it has been variously interpreted4 ,adam
  is depicted with an apple1 a pear1 a  
quince1 a fig1 according to the         
individual opinion of the painter4      
,milton took the tree to be an apple3   
#8,a goodly tree4444      ,laden with   
fruit of fairest colours mixt           
,ruddie and gold 444              ,sharp
 desire ,i had      ,of tasting those   
fair apples4'#cjc    ,and the majority  
of artists have chosen that fruit4 ,it  
grew in every  part of ,europe1 and1    
except the cherry1 it was almost the    
only  cultivated fruit in ,germany and  

the ,netherlands4 ,besides grapes1 figs 
and pomegranates it is the only fruit   
mentioned in ,scripture1 and it is  also
 possible that some found reason for    
identifying it with the fruit  which    
brought sin into the world in the       
apparent similarity of the two  ,latin  
words1 #8mlum'  evil1 and #8mlum'  an   
apple4    ,and as the fruit varies in   
the hand of ,adam so it varies in the   
hand  of the ,infant ,christ1 the second
 ,adam4 ,memling and the painters of    
,cologne depict ,him with an apple4 ,il 
,moretto paints a pear1#cjd  ,giovanni  
,bellini a quince1#cje and ,botticelli a
 pomegranate4#cjf  ,the ,eve of ,jan van
 ,eyck holds a lemon1#cjg but he keeps  
to the older  convention in the symbols 
which he places in the hand of the      
,infant  ,saviour3 the bird1 emblem of  
the human soul1 the inscribed scroll or 
the cross-surmounted orb4    ,the apple1
 when in the hand of ,adam1 is always   
the symbol of the ,fall2  when in the   
hand of ,christ1 it is the symbol of the

 sin of the world  which ,he took upon  
,himself4 #8,for as in ,adam all die1   
even so in ,christ  shall all be made   
alive4'    ,but in the early instances  
of a fruit in the ,christ-,child's hand 
it  does not appear to be definitely the
 death-giving apple of ,eden4 ,it is    
fruit of ,paradise1 a delight promised  
to the blessed which the ,king of       
,heaven brings down with ,him to earth4 
,in the early school of ,siena1 as we   
have already seen1 the little  ,christ  
was still the ,royal ,infant1 still     
#8trailing clouds of glory1'  untouched 
by shadow of suffering1 and usually     
bearing in ,his hand some  indication of
 ,his high estate4 ,often ,his hand was 
raised in blessing1  sometimes ,he held 
a lily of ,paradise4    ,on an early    
fourteenth-century panel in the manner  
of the ,lorenzetti1  in ,siena ,academy1
 the ,child holds a fruit1 but it is not
 clearly  defined4 ,in one of ,sano di  
,pietro's most attractive works1#cjh    
however1 which is dated #addd1 the      

,child1 seated on the ,virgin's  knee1  
holds a golden orange with its foliage4 
,to ,his right and left  are saints1 and
 close around there are six angels      
crowned with blue  corn-flowers and     
carrying roses and lilies4 ,no attempt  
is made to  realize earthly conditions2 
the glowing scene is set in ,heaven1 and
  the little ,lord of ,heaven holds in  
,his hand a celestial fruit1 just  one  
of such fruits as hang upon the trees in
 ,giovanni di ,paolo's                  
#8,paradise4'#cji    ,in another picture
 by ,sano di ,pietro1#caj the ,child    
7perhaps the most  charming #8,bambino' 
ever painted in ,siena7 holds in ,his   
hand a bunch  of cherries4    ,cherries1
 painted more than once within the tiny 
hand by ,sano di  ,pietro1 are always   
taken as the delicious fruit4 ,like the 
lilies of  the earlier ,paradises they  
typify the delights of the blessed1 and 
in  ,german art particularly they are   
painted often as the peculiar fruit  of 
,heaven4 ,they are never taken as the   

,fruit of the ,tree of ,knowledge  of   
,good and ,evil1 and therefore1 at least
 in the early ,sienese school1  this    
fruit held by the ,infant ,christ would 
seem to be the fruit of  ,paradise4     
,in ,northern art1 in the work of the   
,french ivory cutters1 and  particularly
 in the work of ,memling and of those   
artists influenced  by him1 the apple   
takes precedence of all other symbols in
 the  ,christ-,child's hand4 ,northern  
theologians1 studying the ,old          
,testament  carefully1 and deeply       
interested in types and anti-types1 saw 
in ,adam  the type of ,christ4 ,the     
,biblia ,pauperum1 originally designed  
with  the intention of teaching the     
faith to the unlettered1 served as a    
pattern-book for stained glass and other
 ecclesiastical decoration from  the    
ninth century onwards4 ,each page is    
divided into three sections4  ,in the   
centre is a scene from the life of      
,christ2 in the sections  on either side
 is a scene from ,old ,testament        

,history1 showing some  incident in the 
lives of those men who are considered to
 be types of  ,christ1 which            
foreshadowed some act of the ,redeemer4 
,and chief of these  types is ,adam4    
,therefore in the ,northern ,church the 
idea of ,jesus  ,christ as the second   
,adam was familiar1 and the fruit in    
,his hand was  perfectly understood as a
 symbol4 ,memling1 who1 if he did not   
originate  the symbolism of the apple of
 ,eden1 made it famous by constant      
repetition on his magnificently executed
 panels1 usually treats it  quite       
simply4 ,the apple is the symbol of the 
,fall1 and therefore of  the world's    
sin1 which ,christ accepts as ,his own4 
,in the fine example  at ,chatsworth1   
the ,infant ,christ1 with one hand      
pointing to the book of  prophecy1 takes
 with the other the apple held by an    
attendant angel4  ,but one painting by  
,memling#caa is especially interesting1 
since it  links together the two        
symbols1 the fruit of heavenly bliss and

 the  fruit of ,man's redemption4 ,the  
,child sits upon ,his mother's knee1    
and in one hand clutches cherries1 the  
fruit of ,paradise4 ,he seems1  however1
 on the point of relinquishing them to  
take the apple from the  angel's hand1  
as ,he relinquished heavenly joy to take
 upon ,himself the  sin of the world4   
,illustration3          ,hugo van der   
,goes      ,photo ,brogi    ,,the       
,,fruit ,,of ,,damnation ,,exchanged    
,,for ,,the ,,fruit ,,of ,,redemption   
,illustration3          ,memling        
,photo ,brogi    ,,the ,,fruit ,,of     
,,heaven ,,relinquished ,,for ,,the     
,,apple ,,of ,,eden    ,meanwhile the   
painters of ,florence1 ,fra ,angelico1  
,neri di ,bicci1  ,filippo ,lippi and   
,botticelli1 had painted the ,child with
 the  pomegranate1 and it is not very   
clear whether they held to the ,sienese 
symbolism or sympathized with the       
,northern tradition4 ,but it was        
probably the fruit of ,eden1 for in all 
other points the ,florentines had       

broken with the ,byzantine conventions1 
and the ,child was for them no  longer  
the ,royal ,child1 richly clothed and   
dignified in gesture1 but  ,he was a    
little naked human baby1 born into the  
world to repair1 as  the second ,adam1  
the old ,adam's fault4 ,that ,he is the 
,saviour1 rather  than the ,king1 is    
particularly emphasized by ,botticelli1 
who seldom  fails1 even though it be    
only by the foreboding in the grey eyes 
of the  angels1 to give some hint of the
 coming tragedy4    ,on the other hand  
it may be possible that the painters of 
,florence  in the fifteenth century had 
harked back to another source for their 
symbolism and had taken the imagery of  
,saint ,gregory the ,great1 who  used   
the pomegranate as the emblem of the    
,christian ,church #8because  of the    
inner unity of countless seeds in one   
and the same fruit4' ,but  in later     
,italian art1 as in all the ,northern   
countries and in modern  ,church        
symbolism1 the fruit1 most usually the  

apple1 which is in the  hand of the     
,infant ,christ1 is the fruit of        
redemption1 as the apple of  ,adam was  
the fruit of damnation4    ,following   
the same analogy1 the ,virgin is        
regarded as the second ,eve1  the second
 universal mother1 who1 through her     
,son1 is to repair the  fault of the    
first4    ,the symbolists of the        
thirteenth century found what they      
considered  proof of this in the word of
 ,scripture4    ,conrad von ,wrztburg   
writes3       #8,let a man take three   
letters3      ,when these               
straightforward are read1      ,the     
little word 8,ave0 stands out1      ,the
 new word of salutation 7or healing74   
,let him begin at the end1      ,and    
read to the beginning1      ,and 8,eva0 
is found written4               99      
99       99       99       99           
,that one may thereby know1      ,it is 
thou who fulfillest1      ,the old and  
the new ,covenants4      ,the greeting  
from the angel's mouth      ,greeting   

thee1 ,o royal spotless maid1      ,hath
 told me this4'#cab    ,therefore the   
apple1 which masters of the ,flemish and
 early ,german  schools sometimes       
introduced into ,annunciations1 laying  
it1 for  instance1 upon the window-sill1
 is the apple of redemption4    ,the    
apple in the hand of ,eve is always the 
apple of damnation4 ,there is  a curious
 drawing by ,martin ,schngauer of the   
#8,descent into ,hell4' ,adam  and ,eve 
come forth first of the released souls1 
,eve holding the apple1  which has the  
marks of her teeth still upon it4    ,in
 the hand of ,mary it is again the apple
 of redemption1 but it is the  fruit of 
the ,fall when it is between the jaws of
 the serpent or dragon1  which she1 at  
her ,assumption1 treads under foot4     
,illustration3      ,martin ,schngauer  
,,adam ,,and ,,eve ,,delivered ,,from   
,,hell    7,print ,room1 ,alte          
,pinakothek1 ,munich7    ,in ,italian   
art the apple is less often found in the
 ,madonna pictures1  but the ancient    

analogy was not forgotten4 ,on the      
predella of ,lorenzo  di ,credi's       
#8,annunciation'#cac there are three    
exquisite little scenes  from the life  
of ,eve1 and ,vasari introduces the     
,tree of the ,knowledge  of ,good and   
,evil into his #8,conception of the     
,virgin1' painted in #aedj4  ,vasari    
describes it himself3    #8,the ,tree of
 the ,original ,sin was represented in  
the centre of the  painting1 and at the 
roots thereof were placed nude figures  
of ,adam and  ,eve bound1 as being the  
first transgressors of ,god's commands4 
,to the  principal branches there were  
also bound ,abraham1 ,isaac1 ,jacob1    
,moses1  ,aaron1 ,joshua1 ,david and the
 rest of the kings1 law-givers1 etc41   
according to their seniority1 all       
fastened by both arms1 excepting  only  
,samuel and ,saint ,john the ,baptist1  
who are bound by one arm only1  to      
intimate that they were sanctified      
before their birth4 ,at the trunk  of   
the tree1 and with the lower part       

turning around it1 is the ,old          
,serpent1 but the upper part of the form
 has the shape of ,man1 and the  hands  
are confined behind the back2 on his    
head is one foot of the  glorious       
,virgin1 which is trampling down the    
horns of the demon1 while  the other    
foot is fixed on a moon4 ,our ,lady is  
clothed with the sun  and crowned with  
twelve stars1 being sustained in the air
 within a  splendour of numerous angels1
 nude1 and illuminated by the rays which
  proceed from the ,madonna herself4    
,these same rays1 moreover1 passing     
amidst the foliage of the tree1 give    
light to the figures bound to the       
branches2 nay1 they seem to be gradually
 loosening their bonds1 by the  power   
and grace which they derive from her out
 of whom they proceed4 ,in  ,heaven1    
meanwhile1 that is1 at the highest point
 of the picture1 are  two children      
bearing a scroll1 on which are the      
following words3            #88,quos    
,eva culpa damnavit1 ,mari gratia       

solvit40'#cad    ,it was thus that      
,vasari united in one picture the two   
universal  mothers1 the physical and the
 spiritual1 and his allegory was typical
  of the mysticism of his day1 for he   
tells us that1 being doubtful as  to the
 due treatment of the subject1 he and   
his patron1 ,messer ,bindo1  #8took     
counsel with such of our common friends 
as were men of letters1'  and ,vasari's 
friends included the fine flower of     
,italian intellect4    ,the picture1    
which is a good deal darkened by time1  
and less  interesting than the          
description leads one to expect1 is     
still in its  original place in the     
,church of ,,ss4 ,apostoli in ,florence4
    ,in some pictures1 particularly     
those showing the influence of ,memling1
  an attendant angel holds the apple1   
holding it ready till the time  shall   
come when the ,infant ,saviour1 with    
growing consciousness of ,his  mission1 
holds forth ,his hand to take it4       
,but there are various #8,holy          

,families'#cae of the early ,german     
school  in which ,saint ,anne sits      
holding the apple4 ,it seems strange    
that she  should1 but it is to be       
remembered that in ,german popular      
religion and  in ,german art ,saint     
,anne holds an important place4 ,altars 
were often  dedicated to her1 and the   
holy family might1 in a manner1 be      
called her  attribute4 ,frequently      
,saint ,anne and the ,virgin are        
depicted seated  on one seat1 apparently
 with equal possessive rights over the  
,holy  ,child1 who stands between them4 
,there is also that strange allegorical 
conception usually styled #8,mutter     
,anna selb-dritt1' where ,saint ,anne   
sits with the ,infant ,christ on one    
knee and the ,child-,virgin on the      
other4 ,she was the ,virgin's nearest   
blood-relation1 and if the ,virgin  was 
without sin1 it was ,anne1 born in sin  
but the ,mother of ,his ,mother1  who   
most nearly connected the incarnate     
,godhead with the erring human  race4   

,it was perhaps fitting1 therefore1 that
 she1 representing sinful  humanity1    
should offer to the ,saviour the fruit  
of the ,fall1 which in  ,his hand would 
become the fruit of ,redemption4 ,at    
other times it is  ,mary who holds the  
fruit1 but offering it to the ,saviour1 
who raises  ,his hand to take it4 ,she1 
as the second ,eve1 places in ,his hand 
the  apple by which mankind is to be    
redeemed1 not lost1 since she1 by       
giving ,him a human body1 had made that 
redemption possible4    ,in the ,corsini
 ,gallery#caf there is a picture1       
attributed to ,hugo  van der ,goes1 in  
which ,mother and ,child hold each a    
fruit4 ,at first  sight it seems as if  
it were a presentment in one picture of 
,christ as  the second ,adam1 and ,mary 
as the second ,eve1 with a doubling of  
the  symbolism of the apple which would 
be illogical4 ,but the fruit held by    
,mary is distinctly a pear1 that held by
 ,christ apparently an apple4 ,the      
artist has1 therefore1 discriminated    

between the apple of damnation and  the 
sweeter1 mellower fruit1 which may be   
the symbol of ,redemption1 for  the     
,holy ,child seems to be in the act of  
exchanging one for the other4    ,this  
may possibly also explain the thought in
 the mind of the  ,french ivory-cutters 
of the fourteenth century1 for they1    
too1 not  infrequently1 placed a small  
round fruit resembling an apple in the  
hand of the ,infant ,christ and a larger
 pear-shaped fruit in that of ,his      
mother1 though they give little         
indication of any action of exchange4   
,northern art1 though realistic1 was    
very placid1 and1 except in scenes  from
 the ,passion1 quite unmarked by the    
sometimes painful pathos of the         
,italian and ,spanish schools4 ,in the  
,madonna pictures the only faint        
reminder of the tragedy for which the   
,child was born into the world  is the  
rosy-cheeked apple in the tiny hand4    
,the mother is satisfied  and           
untroubled1 the ,child smiling happily1 

and an apple is a natural1  pleasant    
thing to place within a baby's hand4    
,rubens painted a  delightful #8,holy   
,family beneath an ,apple ,tree'#cag--;a
 little scene of  idyllic happiness2 and
 scarcely noticeable is the pathetic    
suggestion  of the branch of apples     
which ,zacharias holds towards the      
little ,christ4    ,the shifting of     
theological and artistic standpoints at 
the ,reformation  in no way disturbed   
the ,northern love of ,old ,testament   
analogies or the  affection for this    
particular symbol1 and in ,germany one  
of its most  charming developments was  
the ,christmas tree1 the evergreen tree 
laden  with golden and silver apples1   
set up in every home to commemorate the 
birth of ,christ4 ,it is the ,tree of   
,eden1 which ,christ by ,his birth and  
death transmuted into a tree of         
,paradise4    ,the apple is the most    
usual fruit in the hand of the ,infant  
,christ1 but  some ,flemish painters of 
the early sixteenth century give ,him   

grapes  instead4 ,the grapes symbolize  
the divine blood by which souls lost    
through ,adam's fall are redeemed4      
,gerard ,david#cah puts a cluster of    
white grapes in the tiny hand2 ,lucas   
van ,leyden#cai white grapes also  with 
leaves and tendrils2 and in another     
picture ,lucas van ,leyden#cbj  places  
the apple and the grapes together upon  
the broad ledge in the  foreground4 ,in 
this last there is the same idea of     
exchange which is  found more clearly   
expressed in the picture by ,mabuse at  
,berlin4    ,this substitution of the   
fruit of the vine for the apple of ,eden
 seems  only to be found in the         
,netherlands4 ,in a very beautiful      
picture by  ,botticelli1 the grapes held
 by the angel have a simpler meaning4   
,they1  with the corn1 are the direct   
emblems of the body and the blood of the
  ,saviour1 and foretell the coming     
sacrifice of ,his death2 the symbolism  
is identical with that of the           
embroidered vine-leaves and wheat-ears  

of  so many modern altar frontals4#cba  
,very often1 as upon the faade of       
,orvieto ,cathedral1 the fig-tree  is   
taken as the ,tree of ,temptation1 for1 
it might be argued1 our  first parents  
would take to make themselves garments  
the leaves of  the tree nearest to their
 hand1 the leaves of that same tree of  
whose fruit they had just eaten4 #8,it  
is possible that the erotic             
significance which the fig had among the
 ancients was also considered  in this  
connection1'#cbb and it is probably     
because of its classical  associations  
that the fig was never placed in the    
hand of the ,infant  ,saviour4          
,except as the forbidden fruit the fig  
is not found in ,italian or  ,flemish   
ecclesiastical art1 but in ,germany     
there appears to have been  no prejudice
 against it4 ,it is painted frequently  
in the ,madonna  pictures4 ,a small     
fig-tree overshadows the cot of the     
,infant ,christ  in a picture by        
,matthias ,grnewald2#cbc ,hans          

,burgkmair#cbd paints  it with the rose1
 the iris1 the columbine and other      
attributes of the  ,virgin2 ,hans       
,holbein#cbe the ,younger sets his      
,saint ,ursula against a  fig-tree2 and 
it is the only growing thing introduced 
in his best-known  work1 the beautiful  
,madonna of the ,brgomeister ,meyer4#cbf
    ,these fig-trees1 unlike the barren 
fig-tree of ,scripture1 always bear     
fruit and appear to be the symbols of a 
holy life rich with the fruits  of the  
,spirit4          ,,xxi    ,,the ,,gourd
      ,in the works of ,crivelli1 who   
painted in the cities of the ,marches   
between #adfh and #adic1 the apple      
repeatedly occurs with a gourd laid     
close beside it4 ,in the                
#8,annunciation'#cbg they are together  
upon  the foreground's edge4 ,in #8,the 
,infant ,christ giving the ,keys to     
,saint  ,peter'#cbh the apple lies on   
the ground and the gourd is suspended on
  the right hand of the throne4 ,in the 
triptych in the ,brera they hang        

forward prominently from the wreath     
above the ,madonna's head4 ,they  are   
again suspended1 singly1 each side of   
the head of ,saint ,giacomo  della      
,marca#cbi 7sometimes taken to be ,saint
 ,bernadine71 toning with  the colour   
scheme1 which has all the subdued       
richness of old ,cordova  leather2 and  
exactly the same apple and gourd lie on 
a ledge before  the #8,madonna with the 
,child' by ,francia1#ccj and have the   
identical  position in an #8,enthroned  
,madonna' by ,lorenzo da ,san           
,severino4#cca    ,as the grouping of   
these two fruits is so insistently      
repeated there is  reason to think that 
it was no chance arrangement4 ,the      
painter seems  to attach some definite  
meaning to their juxtaposition1 and     
since not  ,crivelli only1 but also     
,francia and ,lorenzo da ,san ,severino1
 place them  together1 and well forward 
in the picture where the eye cannot miss
  them1 they are apparently recognized  
symbols1 not the whim of a single       

painter4    ,the apple is1 probably1    
here as elsewhere1 the fatal fruit of   
,eden1 and  the gourd may represent the 
fruit which is to be the antidote1 in   
the  same sense that the grape is       
occasionally used by painters of the    
early  ,flemish school4 ,in this case   
the gourd would represent the           
,resurrection  and be the revival of a  
very ancient symbol which has an        
interesting  history4 ,among the wall   
paintings of the ,catacombs the story of
  ,jonah is very repeatedly found4 ,he  
is taken as the type of the risen       
,christ1#ccb since ,christ ,himself1    
answering the ,pharisees1 made the      
comparison4 ,he is represented both as  
being cast up by the fish and1 in  the  
ensuing incident of his history1        
reposing under the gourd on the  east   
side of the city of ,nineveh4 ,the first
 subject being certainly  grotesque1 it 
became more usual to depict him beneath 
the booth covered  with long-shaped     
gourds1 and his sleeping figure 7usually

 with the  legs crossed7 is found       
constantly both among the ,catacomb     
paintings  and on fragments of the early
 ,christian gilded glass4 ,above him    
there  is always the same pergola-like  
booth with the hanging gourds4 ,one     
small disk of gold-ornamented ,catacomb 
glass#ccc has upon it the usual  gourd1 
but below1 in place of ,jonah1 there is 
a large fish 7,ichthys71  an emblem of  
,christ dating from the second century4 
,thus the type of  ,christ has been     
replaced by ,his emblem1 but the gourd1 
by association  symbol of ,his          
,resurrection1 remains4    ,therefore in
 these pictures by ,crivelli the apple  
would be the symbol  of our death by the
 act of ,adam1 and the gourd of our     
,resurrection by  the act of the second 
,adam1 ,jesus ,christ4    ,in a picture 
of the ,fall1 painted in #aegj by       
,floris ,francesco of  ,antwerp1#ccd    
,adam sits upon the ground while ,eve   
offers him an apple  from the tree4 ,on 
the earth beside ,adam lies a very large

 gourd4 ,this  gourd may only exemplify 
the fruitfulness of ,eden1 or it may be 
another  example of the antithetical use
 of this symbol4          ,,xxii        
,,the ,,pomegranate      ,neri di       
,bicci1#cce ,fra ,angelico1#ccf ,filippo
 ,lippi#ccg and other  artists of the   
fifteenth century painted the ,infant   
,saviour with a  pomegranate in ,his    
hand4    ,on the wall of the            
,bargello1#cch in the ,chapel of the    
,podest1 is  a frescoed ,paradise1 which
 contains a figure long believed to be  
a portrait of ,dante by ,giotto4 ,he is 
seen in profile1 wearing the            
characteristic hood1 and holds in his   
hand a small branch on which  are two   
ripe pomegranates4 ,the fresco is not   
now considered to be by  ,giotto1 nor   
the portrait contemporaneous1 but that  
would not materially  affect the meaning
 of the pomegranates1 if they be a      
symbol1 since the  painting dates from  
the last half of the fourteenth century4
    ,were it not for ,dante's           

pomegranate there would be no particular
  reason to think that the artists of   
the #8,quattrocento' meant more than    
simply to indicate some heavenly fruit  
when they placed the pomegranate  in the
 hand of the ,child ,christ4 ,in        
accordance with the ,byzantine          
tradition to which ,siena held1 they    
regarded ,him as the ,royal ,child  come
 to earth with ,heavenly gifts in ,his  
hand2 they had not yet adopted  the     
symbolism of the ,north1 which saw in   
the ,infant ,christ the second  ,adam1  
holding the fruit of the ,tree of       
,knowledge of ,good and ,evil1  though  
indeed ,botticelli1 who almost always   
gives some indication of  coming sorrow 
in ,christ's childhood1 seems to have   
found some sad inner  meaning in the    
symbol4    ,but in ,dante's hand the    
fruit could not be the fruit of         
,paradise1 and  it may therefore have   
some further meaning even when held by  
the ,infant  ,saviour4    ,illustration3
          ,botticelli        ,photo     

,brogi    ,,the ,,child ,,with ,,the    
,,pomegranate ,,surrounded ,,by ,,angels
 ,,with ,,lilies ,,and                  
,,rose-,,garlands    7,uffizi ,gallery1 
,florence7    ,walter ,pater writes3    
#8,the mystical fruit1 which because of 
the  multitude of its seeds was to the  
,romans a symbol of fecundity 444 to    
the middle age became a symbol of the   
fruitful earth itself2 and then  of that
 other seed sown in the dark underworld2
 and at last of the  whole hidden       
region1 which ,dante visited4444        
,botticelli putting it  into the        
childish hands of ,him1 who1 if men went
 down into hell1 is  there also4'       
,so1 as the symbol of the life on the   
other side of death1 the  pomegranate is
 exceedingly well placed when given to  
the writer of the  ,divina ,commedia1   
and it is even more appropriate in the  
hand of the  incarnate ,godhead--,he who
 holds our future destinies in the      
hollow of  ,his palm4    ,but it is     
difficult to ascertain if this was      

really the thought in the  minds of the 
,florentine artists4    ,mrs ,jameson   
considers the pomegranate to be the     
symbol of immortality1  or1 showing the 
seeds1 of hope in eternity4    ,but it  
would scarcely be the symbol of         
immortality in the ,infant  ,saviour's  
hand1 since the symbol so placed is     
never ,his exclusive  attribute1 but the
 indication of some relationship with   
humanity4 ,but  showing the seeds--and  
the seeds are usually shown--it might be
 the  symbol of a hope in eternity which
 ,he gives to man1 the parallel lying   
in the unexpected sweetness of the fruit
 within the hard rind4    ,but possibly 
the authority followed by the masters of
 the  #8,quattrocento1' or by those     
churchmen who gave them their           
commissions1  was ,gregory the ,great1  
for he says3 #8,the pomegranate is the  
emblem of  congregations because of its 
many seeds3 also emblem of the          
,christian  ,church because of the inner
 unity of countless seeds in one and the

  same fruit4    ,following this        
interpretation1 the pomegranate1 when   
carried by ,dante  or any other being of
 mortal birth1 would indicate his faith 
in the  ,holy ,catholic ,church4    ,in 
,northern art the pomegranate is very   
rare4 ,the ,flemish artists  ignore it1 
and those few ,german artists who paint 
it are those who  had come under        
,italian influence4 ,and it does not    
seem entirely clear  whether those      
,german artists who1 like ,hans         
,burgkmair1#cci paint it  in the ,infant
 ,christ's hand1 give to the ,southern  
fruit the ,southern  significance1 or if
 for them it becomes the fruit of ,eden 
in the hand  of the second ,adam4    ,in
 scenes representing different events in
 the life of ,christ1 trees  of         
pomegranates are occasionally           
introduced4 ,giovanni di ,paolo sets    
the #8,nativity'#cdj in an orchard of   
pomegranates1 and in a ,florentine      
picture of the fourteenth century#cda   
the newly-risen ,christ is  surrounded  

by palms1 pomegranates and flowers4     
,these pomegranates1  however1 do not   
seem to be used attributively but merely
 to give some  slight geographical      
indication4 ,bethlehem was an ,eastern  
city2 the tomb  of ,christ was in an    
,eastern garden4    ,the pomegranate is 
also1 theoretically1 the emblem of the  
,virgin4 #8,in  the symbolism of the    
cult of ,mary1 the ripe pomegranate1    
because of  its pleasant fragrance and  
its numerous seeds1 represents her      
beauty  and many virtues1 but the       
gradually-developing fruit refers to her
  life4'#cdb    #8,the pomegranate with 
its crowned top is her as queen1 and    
typifies  also hope and fruitfulness1   
the 8,virginitas fecunda0 of the octave 
of  ,christmas4'#cdc    ,jeremy ,taylor1
 in a beautiful passage1 describes ,mary
 as the  pomegranate tree and ,christ as
 the fruit4    #8,when the ,holy ,virgin
 now perceived that the expectation of  
the nations  was arrived at the very    
doors of revelation and entrance into   

the  world1 she brought forth the ,holy 
,jesus1 who1 like light through a       
transparent glass1 past through1 or a   
ripe pomegranate from a fruitful  tree1 
fell to the earth1 without doing        
violence to its nurse and  parent4'     
,in art1 however1 the pomegranate is    
very seldom used as the attribute  of   
the ,virgin4 ,occasionally the          
,florentine masters ornament the        
,virgin's throne with knobs which more  
or less resemble the fruit1 and         
,flemish artists1 ,memling in           
particular1 place behind her a brocaded 
panel of the well-known pomegranate     
design4 ,but these pomegranate knobs    
were a very usual detail in carved work1
 and the pomegranate pattern1  which    
still persists1 was a standard design of
 the silk-weavers of  ,france and       
,italy4    ,the fruit itself is not used
 by the older masters4 ,even ,crivelli1 
who  lavishes fruit of almost every sort
 upon his slender1 long-figured         
,madonnas1 leaves the pomegranate aside4

    ,in modern work1 ,podesti1 in his   
vast fresco of the ,immaculate          
,conception1#cdd has placed a large     
single pomegranate upon a book  arranged
 prominently in the foreground4 ,it is  
the symbol1 apparently1  of the         
fruitfulness of the ,virgin4    ,the    
ancient ,jews ornamented their temple   
with the pomegranate1 and  their high   
priest's robes were bordered with       
alternate bells and  pomegranates4 ,in  
the ,christian ,church1 too1 they have  
been admitted  as decoration1 though not
 with any very clear and definite       
symbolical  significance4 ,there is a   
very handsome seventeenth-century       
altar-rail  of marble on which rest     
candlesticks and huge brass pomegranates
 before  the high altar in the ancient  
church of ,s4 ,cecilia in ,rome2 and a  
great  bronze pomegranate1 worn by much 
caressing1 is on the balustrade in the  
tiny chapel which was once the bathroom 
of the saint4          ,,xxiii    ,,the 
,,strawberry      ,the strawberry stands

 apart from all other symbolical fruits4
 ,it is  found in ,italian1 ,flemish and
 ,german art1 and also in the ,english  
miniatures4 ,there is a finely-executed 
,spanish miniature of the  sixteenth    
century in ,south ,kensington ,museum4  
,the ,pelican in her  ,piety is in the  
centre and the border is formed of roses
 alternating  with strawberries4 ,as a  
symbol it is not only widespread1 but of
  comparatively early origin4 ,in ,siena
 it appears as a flower of ,heaven1     
growing with lilies1 violets and        
carnations1 in the #8,paradise' of      
,giovanni di ,paolo painted in #adde2cde
 and1 almost at the same time1  a master
 of the ,upper ,rhine painted the       
well-known #8,madonna of the            
,strawberries1'#cdf which represents the
 ,virgin sitting upon the edge  of a    
raised bed filled with                  
exquisitely-rendered strawberries4      
,behind  is a hedge of roses1 and at her
 feet violets and lilies of the valley4 
,in the foreground is a small figure of 

the donor kneeling among tufts  of      
snowdrops4 ,the snowdrop is rare as a   
symbol 7though by no means  misplaced in
 a ,madonna picture1 having all the     
qualities1 except the  perfume1 of the  
lily of the valley71 and it was probably
 the individual  fancy of the donor4    
,the strawberry is not mentioned in     
,scripture1 neither does it seem  to    
have been remarked by those ,fathers of 
the ,church who concerned  themselves   
with symbolism1 but it was very         
successful in its appeal  to the artists
 of the ,renaissance4 ,it is a very     
perfect fruit1 with  neither thorns nor 
stone1 but sweet1 soft and delicious    
through and  through4 ,its flowers are  
of the whiteness of innocence and its   
leaves  almost of the sacred trefoil    
form1 and since it grows upon the       
ground1  not on a tree1 there is no     
possibility of its being the dread fruit
 of  the ,tree of ,knowledge4    ,its   
meaning always appears to be the same2  
it is the symbol of perfect             

righteousness1 or the emblem of the     
righteous man whose fruits are  good    
works4    ,as the symbol of perfect     
righteousness1 in ,italy it is chiefly  
used in  #8,adorations1' where the      
,infant ,christ is laid upon the ground 
among the  grass4 ,botticelli seems to  
have been the first to have placed it   
among  the violets and daisies1 but he  
had many followers1 and a very charming 
picture1 with the little scarlet berries
 in the foreground1 is the              
#8,adoration' by ,perugino1 now in      
,munich4 ,botticelli may1 however1 have 
borrowed the symbol from ,giovanni di   
,paolo1#cdg who painted a small         
minutely-finished picture of the        
,virgin1 seated on a cushion1 with  the 
,holy ,child in her arms4 ,behind are   
fruit trees and strawberries1  violets  
and carnations are at her feet1 and     
since it was usual in  ,siena1 in       
pictures where the ,infant ,saviour     
appears1 to refer all  symbols to ,him1 
they are ,his attributes4 ,in ,german   

art of the fifteenth  century1 on the   
other hand1 the symbolical plants1      
including the  strawberry1 which appears
 in the mystical #8,enclosed ,gardens1' 
express  the virtues of ,mary4    ,the  
symbolical strawberry is almost         
invariably accompanied by the  violet1  
from which we may gather that the truly 
fruitful soul is always  humble4        
,,xxiv    ,,fruit ,,in ,,garlands       
,fruit in general signifies #8the fruits
 of the ,spirit--joy1 peace and  love4' 
,and therefore the painters of ,northern
 ,italy wove peach and  plum1 apples and
 grapes into heavy garlands1 which they 
looped above  the place where the ,holy 
,child sat enthroned upon ,his mother's 
knee1 or  they laid fresh1 ripe fruit   
upon the step where the ,virgin's feet  
were  resting4    ,the wreath of fruit1 
when festooned behind or below a saint1 
was more  particularly a symbol of the  
good works of the righteous2 when looped
  above his head1 it is a festal wreath 
equalling the victor's crown4  ,such a  

wreath is that of mingled fruit and     
flowers above the head of  ,mantegna's  
#8,triumphant ,saint ,george4'#cdh      
,but the fruit in many of the devotional
 pictures of the earlier  ,venetian     
masters would seem1 like the rose       
gardens of ,florence1 to be  partly     
votive4 ,they wished to give of their   
best1 and the cool fruit  which came in 
high-piled boats to the gardenless city 
among the lagoons  seemed infinitely    
precious to them--more precious1 for    
they were a  practical race of traders1 
than the fragile blossoms of ephemeral  
flowers4 ,besides1 except for pinks1    
which1 judging from various  pictures1  
grew then as now in pots along the      
balconies1 flowers to  serve as models  
were rare in ,venice4    ,garlands of   
fruit1 excellently modelled but somewhat
 wanting in  softness and bloom1 are    
especially remarkable in the work of the
  pupils of ,squarcione1 who taught in  
,padua during the last half of the      
fifteenth century4 ,this famous ,school 

of ,art is known to have been well      
furnished with ancient marbles of ,greek
 and ,roman origin1 and it is to  be    
supposed that there the pupils acquired 
a love for the classical  festooned     
wreath4 ,mantegna's wreaths1 and those  
in the earlier work  of ,crivelli1 are  
firmly bound and formal4 ,but later1    
,crivelli laid  classicism aside1       
painting fruit with a freedom and       
profusion which is  quite his own1      
though there is ever the feeling that it
 is sculptured  and coloured stone1 not 
soft and perfumed fruit-flesh4 ,he1 in  
one  picture1 paints fruit decoratively1
 bound with its foliage into a sort  of 
bower for the ,virgin1 places it        
symbolically in the hand of the  ,infant
 ,christ1 and also lays it as a votive  
offering at the ,virgin's  feet4#cdi    
,in a picture by ,giorgio ,schiavone1   
another pupil of ,squarcione1 odd       
little angels offer dishes of fruit to  
the ,infant ,christ4#cej    ,but1 except
 in ,northern ,italy1 fruit in garlands 

was more used in  decoration than in    
devotional pictures4 ,magnificent       
wreaths of carved  stone fruit and      
foliage droop on either side of the     
great circular  windows of ,siena       
,cathedral2 there are heavy painted     
wreaths of it  beneath the figures of   
the ,apostles in the chapel of the      
,vatican  decorated by ,fra ,angelico2  
and the ,della ,robbias enclosed some of
  their most lovely works1 with apples1 
pears1 lemons1 pine-cones and           
pomegranates1 growing stiffly and       
beautifully into a symmetrical  border4 
,fruit-forms were1 indeed1 infinitely   
better suited to the  ,della ,robbia    
medium than were the delicate petals of 
flowers4    ,the ,florentines1 too1     
often placed their ,madonnas in         
elaborate wooden  frames of carved and  
gilded fruit--remembering perhaps the   
epithet of  ,saint ,bernard1 who styled 
the ,virgin ,mary #8the sublime fruit of
 the  earth1'#cea finding in her the    
fulfilment of the prophecy3    #8,in    

that day shall the branch of the ,lord  
be beautiful and glorious1  and the     
fruit of the earth shall be excellent   
and comely4'#ceb    ,but many of these  
garlands of fruit1 or of mixed fruit and
 flowers1  are entirely decorative with 
no hidden meaning4 ,they were a very    
usual  festal decoration in the         
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries1 and 
when  swung above the head of ,memling's
 #8,enthroned ,madonna1'#cec they are   
no more a symbol than is the carpet     
beneath her feet1 for an almost         
identical wreath1 held in place by the  
same small putti1 is above the  throne  
in ,gerard ,david's #8,judgment of      
,cambyses1'#ced while one which  is very
 similar hangs above the enthroned      
#8,emperor ,sigis mondo1'#cee  incised  
upon the pavement of ,siena ,cathedral4 
,these wreaths distinguish  the throne  
as being more than an ordinary seat1    
but1 beyond vaguely  indicating pomp and
 splendour1 they have no special        
meaning4    ,illustration3 ,the ,sacred 

,heart 7#aith ,century--,german7        
,,the ,,paradise ,,of ,,giovanni ,,di   
,,paolo      ,in the ,gallery of ,siena 
there is a panel by ,giovanni di ,paola1
 the  contemporary and occasional       
assistant of the better-known ,sano di  
,pietro4 ,the panel1 which was painted  
in #adec1 represents the ,last          
,judgment1 and1 naturally1 it is the    
portion of it which is given to         
,paradise1 that is interesting because  
of its flower symbolism4    ,heaven is  
depicted as a hill1 for in the #aeth    
century the prophet  ,esdras was the    
authority relied on for descriptions of 
the heavenly  land1 and ,paradise1 he   
says1 has #8seven mighty mountains on   
which grow  roses and lilies4'#cef      
,at the summit of the hill there are six
 fruit-bearing trees1 for the  prophet  
continues1 #8,saith the ,lord1 444 ,i   
have sanctified and prepared  for thee  
twelve trees laden with diverse         
fruit4'#ceg    ,there are six trees1 not
 twelve1 in this picture1 for1 by a     

convention  common enough in early art1 
where the space did not admit of a      
certain  number1 that number was halved4
    ,beneath the trees wander the happy 
souls1 of whom the greater part  appear 
to have taken holy orders when in the   
flesh4 ,those just arrived  are welcomed
 joyfully by the angels or by friends   
who had preceded them4    ,on the grassy
 bank there are lilies1 the symbol of   
purity2 the  carnation1 equalling the   
rose as the flower of divine love1 the  
violet  of humility and the strawberry1 
whose fruit symbolises the good works   
of the righteous4    ,these are the     
values of the flowers as symbols2 as    
emblems they  translate this ,heaven as 
a perfected counter-part of the ,church 
upon  ,earth1 #8for' says ,durandus1    
commenting on the text1 #8,see the smell
 of  my son is as the smell of a field  
which the ,lord hath blessed4' #8,this  
field is the ,church1 which is verdant  
with flowers1 which shineth with        
virtues1 which is fragrant with good    

works2 and wherein be the roses  of     
martyrs1 the lilies of virgins1 the     
violets of confessors1 and the  verdure 
of beginners in the faith4' ,following  
the same authority1 the  trees are      
emblems of righteous men1 rich in good  
works4#ceh    ,so for three different   
reasons the flowers in this painted     
,paradise  appealed to the devout4 ,they
 help to give a realistic picture of    
,heaven1 presenting in form and colour  
the description of the prophet2  they   
express mystically the ,christian       
graces2 they represent1 to the          
instructed1 the bands of martyrs1 the   
choirs of virgins1 and the  countless   
happy souls for which the painter had no
 space4    ,the little childish beings1 
with wounds upon their necks or sides1  
are  the ,holy ,innocents4 ,two climb up
 the lilies which are their attributes  
as virgin martyrs4 ,though unbaptised1  
the ,innocents1 since they died  for    
,christ1 were permitted to enter        
,heaven4    ,in the foreground1 among   

the violets1 are hares1 the hare being  
an  ancient emblem of a ,christian1     
founded upon the words of ,tertullian3  
#8,upon us1 as were we hares1 is the    
hunt let loose4'#cei    ,also the early 
naturalists averred that the hare slept 
with his eyes  open2 whence the prayer  
of ,saint ,mectilda3    #8,grant1 ,o    
,lord1 that1 like the hare1 ,i may watch
 for ,thee in ,spirit1  even while my   
body takes its needful repose4'#cfj     
,illustration3          ,giovanni di    
,paolo       ,photo ,brogi    ,,paradise
    7,instituto delle ,belle ,arti1     
,siena7          ,,the ,,queen ,,of     
,,heaven    ,,by    ,,hubert ,,van      
,,eyke      ,on the #fth of ,may1 #adcb1
 the great altar-piece painted by       
,hubert and  ,jan van ,eyke1 entitled   
#8,the ,adoration of the ,mystic ,lamb1'
 was erected  as a finished work in the 
,church of ,s4 ,bavon in ,ghent4        
,each of its twelve panels is extremely 
interesting but the detail which  is    
most important in connection with flower

 symbolism is the crown of  the         
,madonna4 ,mary as ,queen of ,heaven1 is
 seated on the right hand of  ,god the  
,father1 her head is slightly bowed as  
she reads from the book  which she holds
 open4    ,her crown is of gold1 set    
with pearls1 sapphires and rubies4      
,above each  large square-cut ruby is   
placed a lily with two dark-blue        
columbines  at its base4 ,above the     
sapphires and alternate with the lilies1
 are  roses1 each surmounted by three   
slender stalks of lily of the valley4 ,a
  cluster of diaphanous gold stars form 
a sort of aureole4    ,the symbolism of 
jewels is complicated and confused1     
varying with  different authorities1 but
 that of flowers is almost always       
unchanged4  ,in this crown the lilium   
candidum1 which takes the place of the  
golden fleurs-de-lys that ornament the  
crowns of earthly queens1  indicates the
 purity of body and of soul by which the
 ,virgin had found  favour in ,god's    
sight4 ,the roses1 three in number1     

denote the ,divine  ,love of the ,holy  
,trinity1 and since these are placed1   
though singly1 in  a crown1 they hold   
also some measure of heavenly joy4      
,the seven blooms of the columbine1     
symbolize the seven gifts of the  ,holy 
,spirit1 which1 when attributed to the  
,virgin1 are1 ,faith1 ,hope1  ,charity1 
,justice1 ,prudence1 ,temperance1 and   
,strength4    ,the lily of the valley1  
found only in northern symbolism1       
typifies the  meekness and #8low estate'
 of the #8hand-maid of the ,lord4'      
,the twelve stars suggested by the      
starry crown of the ,apocalypse1 are    
said by some authorities to represent   
the twelve ,apostles1 illustrating      
,mary's title of #8,regina              
,apostolorum4' ,the #8great wonder' had 
appeared  in ,heaven and the lily-like  
maid was now a queen1 #8the woman       
clothed  with the sun1 and upon her head
 a crown of twelve stars4'              
,illustration3      ,hubert van ,eyke   
,,the ,,queen ,,of ,,heaven    7,from   

copy by ,coxie1 ,alte ,pinakothek1      
,munich7          ,,the ,,adoration ,,of
 ,,the ,,shepherds    ,,by    ,,hugo    
,,van ,,der ,,goes4      ,there has been
 lately placed in the ,uffizi ,gallery1 
the large  #8,adoration of the          
,shepherds1' by ,hugo van der ,goes1    
which was painted  between #adgj and    
#adge by order of ,tommaso ,portinari1  
agent of the  ,medici in ,bruges1 for   
the ,chapel of the ,florentine ,hospital
 of ,santa  ,maria ,nuova4    ,it is a  
tryptich4 ,on the side wings are the    
donor and his family2 in  the centre is 
the #8,adoration of the ,shepherds4'    
,upon the ground in the courtyard of a  
stable1 the ,holy ,child lies in  a pool
 of light emanating from ,himself4 ,his 
mother kneels beside ,him1  and plain   
little angels with jewelled head-dresses
 form a circle round  them4 ,to the     
right is a group of adoring             
shepherds--to the left ,saint  ,joseph4 
,in the foreground of the picture1      
before the ,infant ,christ1 there lies  

a sheaf of corn4 ,there are also two    
vases4 ,one is of pottery1 with  a      
conventional design of grapes and vine  
leaves1 and is filled with  orange      
lilies and the purple and the white     
iris4 ,in the other1 which  is of       
transparent glass1 there is columbine   
and three red carnations2  upon the     
ground are scattered blue and white     
violets4 ,each flower is  painted with  
the most exquisite precision4 ,here the 
flower symbols  all emphasize the       
spiritual significance of the scene4    
,the scattered  violets symbolize       
humility1 for the ,king of ,heaven lies 
on the ground  as a little ,child4 ,the 
white ones among them may denote the    
innocence  of ,his babyhood4 ,the       
transparent glass so often seen in      
,annunciations1  is the symbol of ,his  
immaculate conception1 the group of     
carnations1  alike in shape and colour1 
typifies the divine love of the triune  
,godhead1 which moved the ,son to take a
 human form for our salvation4  ,the    

seven blossoms of the columbine1 the    
flower of the dove1 are  symbols of the 
seven gifts of the ,holy ,spirit with   
which ,he was endowed  at birth4 ,the   
lilies in the vase are ,his own emblem  
as the ,king of  ,heaven1 since ,he     
said3 #8,i am the flower of the field1  
and the lily of  the valleys4' ,they are
 not the lilium candidum1 the flower of 
the  ,madonna's purity1 but the royal   
lilies of the field1 orange1 purple and 
white4 ,even ,solomon1 in gold1 purple  
and fine linen1 #8was not arrayed  like 
one of these4'    ,lastly there is the  
vine1 pictured upon the vase1 and the   
sheaf of  corn1 the eucharistic         
substances which in the sacrifice of the
 ,mass1  repeat the sacrifice for which 
,he was born into the world as a little 
child4    ,it has been said1 and        
reproachfully1 of the ,northern artists 
that they  preferred gold1 jewels and   
rich embroideries to the more ephemeral 
loveliness of flowers4 ,this dictum may 
be just when applied to the  early      

,german schools2 of ,flemish ,art it is 
not true4 ,in this picture1  for        
instance1 the little angels are richly  
dressed but not rose-crowned  like their
 ,florentine cousins4 ,they wear instead
 circlets of precious  stones and       
pearls1 from which spring aigrettes with
 pendant jewels4  ,they carry no flowers
 and no flowers are used to fill vacant 
spaces in  the picture4 ,flowers are    
reserved instead for the highest use of 
all  and are placed in the forefront of 
the scene to represent the virtues  of  
the ,holy ,one4    ,hugo van der ,goes  
has painted almost these same flowers of
 the  ,adoration in his ,fall4#cfa ,adam
 and ,eve stand beneath the tree from   
which ,eve reaches an apple4 ,the       
lizard-bodied tempter stands behind4 ,in
  the centre of the foreground1 in front
 of the figures1 is the iris1 the       
columbine1 the violet1 a rose-bush not  
yet in bloom and the strawberry4  ,there
 is also a pansy 7which is rare as a    
symbol1 except in ,england  where it was

 named ,herb ,trinity17 and its meaning 
in this picture does  not seem clear4   
,these flowers1 used elsewhere as the   
emblems and attributes of ,jesus        
,christ1 here are introduced to recall  
the coming of the #8second ,adam1'      
exactly reversing the symbolism which   
places an apple in the hand of  the     
,infant ,christ4    ,illustration3      
,hugo van der ,goes      ,photo ,brogi  
,,the ,,adoration ,,of ,,the ,,shepherds
    7,uffizi ,gallery1 ,florence7       
,,the ,,immaculate ,,conception    ,,by 
,,murillo      ,in the #agth century the
 ,spanish ,inquisition appointed certain
  familiares whose warrant ran3         
#8,we give him commission and charge him
 hence forward that he take             
particular care to inspect and visit all
 paintings of sacred    subjects which  
may stand in shops or in public places2 
if he finds    anything to object to in 
them he is to take the picture before   
the    ,lords of the ,inquisition4'     
,murillo1 painting for the ,church in   

,seville1 the most orthodox city of     
,spain1 may therefore be reckoned       
correct in his method of presenting     
sacred subjects4 ,at the period in which
 he painted1 the particular form  of    
,madonna picture most often ordered by  
the ,spanish ,church1 was that  known as
 the #8,immaculate ,conception4'    ,the
 sinless birth of the ,virgin was a     
dogma that had been adopted             
enthusiastically by the ,spanish1 so    
much so that ,philip ,,iii and ,philip  
,,iv sent special embassies to ,rome to 
obtain more explicit papal  recognition 
of the doctrine4 ,it did not1 however1  
become an article  of faith till #ahed  
and1 as a subject1 it is chiefly        
confined to the  ,spanish ,school4      
,the scheme of the picture is invariably
 taken from the ,revelation of  ,st4    
,john4      #8,and there appeared a     
great wonder in ,heaven2 a woman clothed
 with    the sun1 and the moon under her
 feet1 and upon her head a crown of     
twelve stars4'    ,it was usual to add a

 group of putti about the ,virgin's feet
 7her  feet1 according to an injunction 
of the ,inquisition as to #8decency'    
being carefully covered7 and these putti
 almost always carried  flowers1 the    
rose1 lily1 olive and palm4 ,sometimes  
the iris was added1  and occasionally   
the iris alone was used4#cfb ,very often
 a putto  carries a looking-glass1#cfc a
 symbol of the ,immaculate ,conception  
which appears to be of ,spanish origin1 
but which is perhaps a variation  or    
development of the transparent vase1    
which in the #aeth century art  was a   
symbol of the virgin birth of ,christ4  
,the idea is that the glass1  whatever  
be the image cast upon it1 remains in   
itself unstained4    ,in ,murillo's     
masterpiece1 #8,la ,purissima' of the   
,prado1 the flowers  indicate ,mary's   
virtues4 ,the rose1 symbol of love and  
mercy1 show  her as the ,mater          
misericordi2 the lily shows her         
purity--she is  #8,la ,purissima3' the  
palm of triumph is hers as the ,queen of

 ,heaven  and the olive tells of the    
healing she brings to mankind2 she is   
the  ,consolatrix ,afflictorum4    ,and 
the ,church having identified the       
,virgin with the #8,wisdom' of the      
#bdth ,chapter of ,ecclesiasticus1 these
 symbols are also her direct  emblems1  
for1 says ,wisdom3    #8,i was exalted  
like a palm-tree in ,engaddi1 and as a  
rose-plant in  ,jericho1 as a fair      
olive-tree in a pleasant field4'    ,and
 the lily is always her emblem as #8,the
 lily of the valleys4'    ,it is        
noticeable that this figure of the      
,virgin1 realized from the  word picture
 of the ,revelation of ,saint ,john1 was
 one that appealed  strongly to the     
,spanish4 ,she is #8clothed with the sun
 and the moon  under her feet4' ,the    
moon is represented as the crescent moon
 which was  the sacred device of the    
followers of ,mahomet1 and which had    
surmounted  innumerable mosques         
throughout the ,iberian peninsula for   
more than  five hundred years4          

,ferdinand1 husband of ,isabella1 put an
 end to  the ,moorish dominion in #adib1
 but the impress of the ,moor is to this
  day strong on the land1 and in the    
#agth century it seemed a fitting  thing
 that the ,virgin's foot should be upon 
the hated crescent which  symbolized    
,moorish rule and the faith of ,islam4  
,it was therefore1 as  a symbol of the  
,mohamedan faith rather than as a symbol
 of chastity  through its connection    
with the ,goddess ,diana1 as is         
sometimes  suggested1 that              
representations of the ,virgin with her 
feet upon a  crescent1 became so popular
 in ,spain4    ,illustration3           
,murillo       ,photo ,anderson    ,,the
 ,,immaculate ,,conception    7,prado1  
,madrid7          ,,the ,,girlhood ,,of 
,,mary ,,virgin    ,,by    ,,dante      
,,gabriel ,,rossetti      ,in the year  
#ahdh1 three young ,english painters1   
,dante ,gabriel ,rossetti1  ,john       
,everett ,millais and ,william ,holman  
,hunt1 founded the ,preraphaelite       

,brotherhood1 the aim of which was to   
bring back to modern art the  sincerity 
of those painters who had preceded      
,raphael4    ,the original              
characteristics of the brotherhood's    
work were a  simplicity in the types    
chosen and a workmanship almost ,flemish
 in its  careful and minute finish4 ,but
 later1 and more particularly in the    
work  of ,rossetti1 #8,preraphaelism'   
became associated with a certain        
mysticism  of subject whose deeper      
meaning was accentuated and elucidated  
by the  use of symbols and more         
especially flower symbols4              
,rossetti's earliest exhibited work was 
#8,the ,girlhood of ,mary ,virgin1'     
painted in #ahdi4    ,the ,virgin with  
,saint ,anne by her side1 sits at an    
embroidery frame and  works upon a strip
 of red material the lily with two      
flowers and a bud  which grows in a vase
 before her4 ,a little rosy winged angel
 waters the  lily1 and1 lying crossed   
upon the ground1 is a seven-leaved palm 

and a  seven-thorned briar1 united by a 
little scroll bearing the words #8,tot  
dolores1 tot gaudia4'    ,the second    
part of the double sonnet written by the
 artist for this  picture explains to   
some extent the symbolism4              
,,ii        ,these are the symbols4 ,on 
that cloth of red      ,i' the centre is
 the ,tripoint3 perfect each            
,except the second of its points1 to    
teach      ,that ,christ is not yet     
born4 ,the books--whose head      ,is   
golden charity1 as ,paul hath said--    
,those virtues are wherein the soul is  
rich3      ,therefore on them the lily  
standeth1 which      ,is innocence1     
being interpreted4        ,the          
seven-thorn'd briar and the palm        
seven-leaved1      ,are her great sorrow
 and her great reward4      ,until the  
end be full1 the ,holy ,one      ,abides
 without4 ,she soon shall have achieved 
,her perfect purity3 yea1 ,god the ,lord
      ,shall soon vouchsafe ,his ,son to
 be her ,son4    ,behind the ,virgin is 

the trellis of the #8,enclosed ,garden4'
 ,beyond--for  still the #8,holy ,one   
abides without'--is the vine1 emblem of 
the #8,true  ,vine1' the figure of      
,saint ,joseph1 who tends it1           
forecasting that he  would be the       
guardian of ,christ's infancy4 ,upon the
 trellis1 up which  wreathes the white  
convolvulus1 used in the #aeth century  
as the symbol  of humility1 sits the    
,holy ,dove4    ,finally1 upon the      
balustrade is a rose in a transparent   
vase1 the rose  of divine love conjoined
 with the symbol of transcendant purity4
    ,illustration3          ,dante      
,gabriel ,rossetti      ,photo ,mansell 
,,the ,,girlhood ,,of ,,mary ,,virgin   
,,list ,,of ,,authorities               
,antony1 ,joseph1 ,symbolik der         
,katholischen ,kirchen ,gebrauche       
,archologia      ,augustine1 ,st1       
,confessions      ,beaumont1 de1        
,recherches sur l'origine du ,blazon et 
en particulier        la ,fleur-de-,lis 
,bernard of ,clairvaux1 ,st1 ,sermons   

,biblia ,pauperum1 ,heidelberg ,copy1   
#addj2 ,german ,ed41 #adga1             
,wolfenbttel ,copy      ,byzantine      
,guide to ,painting 7,didron's          
,translation7      ,dante1 ,divina      
,commedia      ,didron1 ,christian      
,iconography      ,durandus1 ,rational  
of the ,divine ,offices      ,edmonson1 
,complete ,book of ,heraldry1 #aghj     
,ford1 ,spanish ,handbook 7,first       
,edition7      ,hirn1 ,yrj1 ,the ,sacred
 ,shrine      ,huysman1 ,j4 ,k41 ,la    
,cathdrale      ,jacobus de ,voragine1  
,legenda ,aurea      ,jameson1 ,mrs1    
,sacred and ,legendary ,art             
,jenner1 ,mrs ,h41 ,christian ,symbolism
      ,liebman1 ,p4 ,s41 ,kleine        
,handwrterbuch der ,christlichen        
,symbolik      ,martin1 ,arthur1        
,mlanges d',archologie      ,mectilda1  
,st1 ,spiritual ,grace      ,menzel1    
,wolfgang1 ,christliche ,symbolik       
,neale1 ,j4 ,m41 ,hymni ,ecclesiae      
,northcote and ,brownlow1 ,roma         
,sotterana      ,schmid1 ,a41           

,christliche ,symbole aus alter und     
neuer ,zeit      ,smith1 ,classical     
,dictionary      ,strabo1 ,walafrid1    
,hortulus      ,syrian ,codice of #ehf1 
,laurentian ,library      ,taylor1      
,jeremy1 ,the ,history of the ,life and 
,death of the ,holy ,jesus              
,tertullian      ,twining1 ,louisa1     
,symbols and ,emblems      ,vasari1     
,lives of the ,painters      ,venturi1  
,storia dell' ,arte ,italiana           
,,index ,,of ,,artists        ,angelico 
da ,fiesole1 #ha1 #ij1 #aca1 #add1 #afg1
 #bde1 #bfa      ,antinoles1 ,jos1 #baf 
,barabino1 ,niccolo1 #abb      ,bellini1
 ,giov41 #bcb1 #bda      ,bonfigli1 #ia1
 #aeh      ,botticelli1 #de1 #ga1 #ge1  
#he1 #ajj1 #aai1 #abb1 #abc1 #abd1 #abh1
 #aff1 #bac1          #bch1 #bdf1 #bfb1 
#bfc      ,botticini1 #gg1 #ahh1 #bac   
,breu1 ,jrg1 #ajg      ,bruder ,wilhelm1
 #baj      ,brgkmair1 ,hans1 #abg1 #bee1
 #bfd        ,cano1 ,alonzo1 #abh       
,carotto1 ,giov4 ,franc41 #ahh          
,carpaccio1 ,vittore1 #ach              

,cavallini1 #ei1 #afd      ,cimabue1    
#ach      ,crivelli1 #aib1 #beg1 #bgc   
,donatello1 #aeh      ,duccio di        
,buoninsegna1 #ei1 #add      ,drer1     
,albert1 #ci1 #ea1 #fh1 #agc            
,filarete1 ,ant41 #dd      ,francesca1  
,piero della1 #adj      ,franciabigio1  
,francesco1 #bjb      ,fries1 ,hans1    
#aef        ,gaddi1 ,taddeo1 #bbf       
,ghirlandaio1 ,dom41 #fg1 #afg1 #bjj    
,giambono1 #bjh      ,giotto1 #ei1 #aeg1
 #aff1 #bjj1 #bbd1 #bbf      ,giovanni  
di ,paolo1 #agg1 #bfh1 #bgj             
,gozzoli1 ,benozzo1 #ih1 #bad           
,grnwald1 ,mat41 #bee      ,guariento1  
#ahj        ,holbein1 ,hans1 #bef       
,holman ,hunt1 #dj1 #abi        ,joos   
van ,cleeve1 #bej        ,leighton1     
,frederick1 #dh      ,leonardo da       
,vinci1 #ab1 #ci1 #aff      ,liberale da
 ,verona1 #bbb      ,lippi1 ,fra        
,filippo1 #de1 #afg1 #ahf1 #bde1 #bfa   
,lochnar1 ,stephen1 #baj                
,lorenzetti1 ,ambrogio1 #aad1 #adb1     
#agg1 #aha1 #bdb      ,lorenzo da ,san  

,severino1 #beh      ,lucas van ,leyden1
 #ea1 #bbg1 #bed      ,luini1 #ic1 #aji1
 #bca        ,mabuse1 #id1 #aai1 #bjd1  
#bci      ,mantegna1 #abj1 #abg1 #bgb   
,maratta1 ,carlo1 #ci      ,master of   
,flmalle1 #fc1 #fi1 #afe      ,master of
 the ,bartholomew ,altar1 #aaj1 #aie    
,master of the ,carnations1 #hf         
,master of the ,sterzing ,altar1 #add1  
#ahi      ,memling1 #ej1 #fc1 #fe1 #ff1 
#ajj1 #aai1 #afh1 #bdc1 #bde            
,michael-,angelo ,buonarroti1 #ab1 #aia 
,moretto1 #aai1 #aeh      ,murillo1 #ge1
 #aae1 #bcc        ,neri di ,bicci1 #de1
 #gg1 #bde1 #bfa      ,niccolo          
d',apulia1 #afd        ,orcagna1 #ei1   
#agi        ,palmezzano da ,forli1 #fh  
,perral1 ,j41 #aeh1 #agd      ,perugino1
 #de1 #bgf      ,pesello1 #fg1 #afi1    
#aib      ,pinturicchio1 #agb           
,pisano1 #bji      ,podesti1 #bfg       
,raphael ,santi da ,urbino1 #ab1 #ic1   
#bac      ,robbia1 ,della1 #bgd         
,romano1 ,giulio1 #bad      ,rosselli1  
,cosimo1 #ajh1 #aeh      ,rossello di   

,jacopo ,franchi1 #ahh      ,rossetti1  
,d4 ,g41 #dj1 #age1 #ahe1 #aii          
,rubens1 ,p4 ,p41 #bj1 #ea1 #adj1 #bec  
,sano di ,pietro1 #ch1 #bdb1 #bdc       
,sassetta1 #bbc      ,sassoferrato1 #acj
      ,schiavone1 ,giorgio1 #bgd        
,schngaur1 #abc1 #bdg      ,schchlin1   
,hans1 #aaj      ,seghers1 #aca         
,signorelli ,luca1 #dg1 #gd1 #aie1 #bjd1
 #bjf1 #bca      ,simone ,martini1 #ei1 
#ia1 #aag1 #agh1 #agi1 #bca      ,sodoma
 7,bazzi71 #aji1 #abc1 #bac             
,spinello ,aretino1 #adb1 #afg1 #aha    
,squarcione1 #bjc      ,stefano da      
,zevio 7da ,verona71 #ajj        ,taddeo
 di ,bartolo1 #afg      ,tobar1 ,alfonso
 da1 #hb      ,trevisani1 ,francesco1   
#aif        ,van der ,goes1 ,hugo1 #fe1 
#fh1 #he1 #ajf1 #ajh1 #aib1 #beb        
,van der ,weyden1 ,roger1 #afe      ,van
 ,eyck1 ,hubert1 #ab1 #ih1 #ajf         
,van ,eyck1 ,jan1 #fc1 #afe1 #afg1 #bda 
,vanni1 ,andrea1 #agg      ,vasari1 ,g41
 #bdh      ,veronese1 ,paul1 #bbh       
,watts1 ,f4 ,g41 #dj      ,wolgemut1    

#aef        ,zurburan1 #gf1 #gg1 #ab    
,,index ,,of ,,flowers        ,acanthus1
 ,chap4 xii4      ,almond1 #aig         
,anemone1 #fj1 #ic      ,apple1 #ad1    
#cb1 #id1 #aai1 #bdj1 ,chap4 xx4        
,balsam1 #aig1 #bah      ,briars1 #cc   
,buckthorn1 #cc      ,burning ,bush1    
#acb1 #aib        ,carnation1 ,chap4    
vi41 #aij1 #aia      ,cedar1 #bf1 #bag  
,cherries1 #bdc1 #bde      ,clover1 see 
,shamrock      ,columbine1 #cj2 ,chap4  
viii41 #agd1 #aih      ,convolvulus1    
#bi1 #dh      ,cyclamen1 #cc            
,daisy1 #ca1 #de1 #aaj1 #afg            
,dandelion1 #cd1 #aie1 #aii        ,fig1
 #bee1 #bef      ,fleur-de-lys1 #cf1    
,chap4 xiii4      ,flower1 ,community of
 the1 #da      ,flower1 ,our ,lady of   
the1 #ha      ,frankincense1 #aih       
,fruit in ,garlands1 ,chap4 xxiv4       
,gold flower1 #gc      ,gourd1 ,chap4   
xxi4      ,grapes1 #bch1 #bed           
,heath1 #bi      ,hellebore1 #cc        
,hemlock1 #acj      ,hyssop1 #cc        
,iris1 #cf2 ,chap4 iv41 #afh1 #aih      

,ivy1 #acj        ,jasmine1 #ca1 #dh1   
#afg1 #bja        ,laurel1 #aaf1 #agg   
,lemon1 #bda      ,lettuce1 #bi         
,lily1 #ad1 #bd2 ,chap4 iii41 #ib1 #aih1
 #baa1 #bae      ,lily of ,florence1 #ha
      ,lily of the ,angel ,gabriel1     
,chap4 xv4      ,lily of the            
,annunciation1 ,chap4 xiv4      ,lily of
 the ,saints1 ,chap4 xviii4      ,lily  
of the ,valley1 #aih1 #bjg      ,lilies 
of the ,virgin's ,tomb1 #bac            
,mandrake1 #cc      ,musk flower1 #aig  
,myrrh1 #bd1 #be1 #bah      ,myrtle1    
#aig1 #bja        ,nettle1 #be1 #cc     
,oleander1 #bbg      ,olive1 #bd1 #cf1  
,chap4 ix4      ,orange1 #bdb           
,palm1 #bd1 #bf1 ,chap4 xi4             
,palm-tree1 #acg1 #ach1 #bah            
,pansy1 #cb      ,passion ,flower1 #aie 
,pear1 #aai1 #beb      ,pomegranate1    
#ih1 #aai1 #bah1 #bde1 ,chap4 xxii4     
,poppy1 #cc        ,quince1 #aai1 #bci1 
#bda        ,rose gardens1 #ig1 #ajj    
,rose garlands1 ,chap4 vii4      ,rose1 
golden1 #aja1 #ajb1 #ajc      ,rose     

hedge1 #ii      ,rose of ,charity1 #bi1 
#bjh      ,rose of ,divine ,love1 #bd1  
#bh2 ,chap4 v41 #agb1 #aij1 #aih        
,rose of ,martyrdom1 #gb      ,rose of  
,venus1 #aja1 #ajb1 #ajc                
,saffron1 #bf      ,shamrock1 #cj1 #aia 
,snowdrop1 #bfi      ,spices1 #bd       
,strawberry1 #de1 #aaj2 ,chap4 xxiii41  
#aih      ,sunflower1 #aii              
,sycamore1 #bf        ,thistle1 #aie    
,thorns1 #cc1 #gg2 ,chap4 x41 #baf      
,thorns1 ,crown of1 #abf1 #abg1 #abh1   
#aca      ,turpentine ,tree1 #bd        
,vine1 #bc2 ,chap4 xix4      ,violet1   
#bh1 #de1 #dh1 #aaj1 #aig1 #aih1 #baj   
,water-lily1 #bi      ,willow1 #aie     
,,footnotes      #a ,dr ,march states   
very clearly the difference between a   
symbol and  an emblem4 #8,a symbol      
stands for an abstract idea1 an emblem  
denotes  a concrete thing1 an attribute 
appears in apposition with the person   
it qualifies2 for example1 in a         
presentment of the ,blessed ,virgin1    
the lily that she holds in her hand or  

that flowers by her side is  her        
attribute4 ,when the lily appears alone 
it represents the ,queen of  ,heaven and
 is her emblem1 but if it indicates     
purity it is a symbol4'    #b ,ghent    
,cathedral4    #c ,the ,prado1 ,madrid4 
#d ,antwerp ,cathedral4    #e ,author of
 ,liber aggregationis1 seu ,liber       
mirabilium de virtutibus  herbarum1     
lapidum et animalium4    #f ,authoress  
of ,the ,garden of ,health4    #g       
#8,this is that herb which such         
physicians as are licensed to  blaspheme
 by authority without danger of having  
their tongues burned  through with a hot
 iron called an herb of the ,trinity2 it
 is also  called1 by those who are more 
moderate1 three faces in a hood 444 and 
in ,sussex we call them pancies4'       
,culpeper's ,herbal4    #h ,c4          
,marriott4    #i ,corsini ,gallery1     
,florence4    #aj ,naples ,museum4      
#aa ,stroganoff ,collection1 ,rome4     
#ab ,accademia1 ,florence4    #ac ,ex   
,convent of ,s4 ,apollonia1 ,florence4  

#ad ,bargello1 ,florence4    #ae        
,adoration1 ,pitti ,palace1 private     
apartments4    #af ,cathedral1 ,perugia4
    #ag ,j4 ,k4 ,huysmans1 ,la          
,cathdrale4    #ah ,attributed to       
,giotto4 ,collection of ,a4 ,e4 ,street1
 ,esq4    #ai ,isaiah ,,xxxv4 #a4    #bj
 ,wolfenbttel ,copy1 ,bibliothque       
,nationale4    #ba ,marienpfarrkirchen1 
,danzig4    #bb ,town ,museum1 ,leyden4 
#bc #8,the ,smaller ,passion1' ,british 
,museum4    #bd ,j4 ,k4 ,huysmans1 ,la  
,cathdrale4    #be ,complete ,book of   
,heraldry1 #aghj4 vol4 i4    #bf #8,the 
effigies of the ,kings of ,navarre1     
successors to ,garcias1  are still to be
 seen with this order about their necks 
in the ,church  of ,st ,mary at ,nagera1
 ,st ,saviour's de ,layra and ,st ,mary 
la ,reale of  ,pompelona1 as also in the
 church at ,ronceneux1 and at ,st       
,john's de la  ,pigna4' 7,edmondson47   
#bg ,now in ,seville ,cathedral4    #bh 
,solomon's ,song v4 #i4    #bi          
#8,ut ipsa corporis species simulacrum  

fuerit mentis4'                         
,de ,verginit1 lib4 ii4 chap4 #b4    #cj
 ,s4 ,maria ,trastevere1 ,rome4    #ca  
,national ,gallery1 ,london4    #cb     
,lower ,church1 ,assisi4    #cc ,uffizi1
 ,florence4    #cd ,or ,san ,michele1   
,florence4    #ce                       
,frankfort-on-the-,maine4    #cf        
,berlin4    #cg ,alte ,pinakothek1      
,munich4    #ch ,royal ,museum1         
,antwerp4    #ci ,coll4 ,radziwill1     
,berlin4    #dj ,royal ,gallery1        
,berlin4    #da ,prado1 ,madrid4    #db 
,uffizi1 ,florence4    #dc #8,coronation
 of the ,virgin1' shrine of ,saint      
,ursula1 ,bruges4    #dd #8,christ      
surrounded by ,angels1' ,royal ,museum1 
,antwerp4    #de #8,madonna with the    
,child1' ,marienpfarrkirche1 ,danzig4   
#df ,purga1 xxix4 #ha4    #dg ,see      
,chapter ,,xiv41 #8,the ,lily of the    
,annunciation4'    #dh ,accademia1      
,florence4    #di ,the ,brera1 ,milan4  
#ej ,the ,rudolphinum1 ,prague4    #ea  
,chaucer1 ,the ,knight's ,tale4    #eb  

,schifanoja ,palace1 ,ferrara4    #ec   
,botticelli1 ,uffizi4    #ed ,walter    
,pater1 #8,sandro ,botticelli4'    #ee  
,legenda ,aurea4    #ef ,william        
,dunbar4    #eg ,the ,book of ,spiritual
 ,grace4    #eh ,orvieto ,cathedral4    
#ei ,accademia1 ,florence4    #fj ,the  
,portincula or ,porzuincola 7the little 
portion7 built by  ,saint ,benedict and 
rebuilt by ,saint ,francis was the first
 church of the  ,franciscan order4 ,it  
is now enclosed by the ,church of ,s4   
,maria degli  ,angeli1 and1 close by1   
the rose-bushes of the legend1 still    
thornless1  are shown4    #fa ,prado1   
,madrid4    #fb ,cadiz4    #fc ,wilton  
,house4    #fd ,museo ,provincial1      
,seville4    #fe ,florence4 ,to be      
placed in the ,riccardi ,palace4    #ff 
,palazzo ,pitti4    #fg ,robert de la   
,condamine1 ,the ,upper ,garden4    #fh 
,in the ,bibliothque de l',arsnal1      
,paris4    #fi ,british ,museum4    #gj 
,dante4    #ga ,in ,france at the same  
period it was very usual to place a     

#8fleur-de-lys' in the ,madonna's hand4 
,for instance1 the beautiful  statuette 
in silver gilt of the early fourteenth  
century1 now in the  ,louvre1 carries a 
#8fleur-de-lys' of crystal in the right 
hand4    #gb ,the ,prado1 ,madrid4      
#gc ,private apartments1 ,pitti ,palace1
 ,florence4    #gd ,uffizi1 ,florence4  
#ge ,an exception is the ,assumption by 
,fungai in the ,belle ,arti  of ,siena1 
where white roses and red carnations    
fill the tomb4 ,the  prejudice appears  
to have been against the red rose4      
#gf ,kunst ,museum1 ,bern4    #gg #8,the
 ,key' of ,saint ,melitus4    #gh       
#8,hortulus1' ,walafrid ,strabo4    #gi 
#8,spiritual ,grace1' ,saint ,mectilda4 
#hj ,the ,wisdom of ,solomon ii4 #h4    
#ha ,passio ,s4,s4 ,jacobi1 ,mariani et 
aliorum martyrum in ,numidia4    #hb    
,sensations d',italie4    #hc ,s4 ,maria
 ,novella1 ,florence4    #hd ,the       
,brera1 ,milan4    #he ,legenda ,aurea4 
#hf ,prado1 ,madrid4    #hg ,ghent      
,cathedral4    #hh ,paradiso1 xxx4 #aad4

    #hi ,ibid4 #aba4    #ij #b ,esdras  
ii4 #ah-ai4    #ia ,written by the monk 
,dionysius of ,mount ,athos in the      
twelfth  century4 ,translated by ,m4    
,didron4    #ib ,adoration of the ,lamb1
 ,ghent ,cathedral4    #ic ,florence4   
#id ,ruskin1 ,modern ,painters4    #ie  
,town ,museum1 ,frankfort-on-the-,maine4
    #if ,the ,song of ,solomon ii4 #b4  
#ig ,museum1 ,verona4    #ih ,rat4      
,off41 iii4 #ah4    #ii ,trsor of ,aix  
la ,chapelle4    #ajj ,arthur ,martin1  
,mlanges d',archologie4    #aja ,opera  
del ,duomo4    #ajb ,isaiah xi4 #a-b4   
#ajc ,christian ,iconography1 ,didron4  
#ajd ,ghent ,cathedral4    #aje ,uffizi 
,gallery4    #ajf ,christian            
,iconography1 ,didron4    #ajg          
,kaiser-,friedrich ,museum1 ,berlin4    
#ajh ,uffizi ,gallery4    #aji ,st      
,petersburg4    #aaj ,tiefenbronn       
,church4    #aaa ,wallraf-,richartz     
,museum1 ,cologne4    #aab ,sophocles1  
dipus ,coloneus4    #aac ,smith's       
,classical ,dictionary4    #aad ,de     

,baptismo1 c4 viii4    #aae ,see        
title-page4    #aaf ,northcote and      
,brownlow1 ,roma ,sotterana4    #aag    
,palazzo ,pubblico1 ,siena4    #aah     
,taddeo di ,bartolo1 ,sano di ,pietro1  
,francesco di ,giorgio ,martini1  ,belle
 ,arti1 ,siena4    #aai ,no4 #afj1      
,belle ,arti1 ,siena4    #abj ,stefano  
di ,giovanni1 ,belle ,arti1 ,siena4     
#aba ,trsor of ,aix la ,chapelle4       
#abb ,trsor of the ,king of ,bavaria4   
#abc ,milton4    #abd #8,the ,nativity1'
 ,national ,gallery4    #abe #8,the     
,nativity1' ,belle ,arti1 ,siena4       
#abf ,collection ,l4 ,mond1 ,london4    
#abg ,durandus1 ,rat4 ,off41 vi4 #dg-i4 
#abh ,ecclesiasticus xxiv4 #ad4    #abi 
,lives of the ,painters4    #acj        
,corsini ,gallery1 ,florence4    #aca   
,monza4    #acb ,palazzo ,pubblico1     
,siena4    #acc ,uffizi1 ,florence4     
#acd ,munich4    #ace ,private          
apartments1 ,pitti ,palace4    #acf     
,nierenberg4    #acg ,mantegna1 ,belle  
,arti1 ,verona4    #ach ,botticelli1    

,poldi ,pezzoli ,collection1 ,milan4    
#aci ,botticelli1 ,borghese ,gallery1   
,rome4    #adj ,museo ,provincial1      
,seville4    #ada ,collection of the    
,duchess of ,fife4    #adb ,royal       
,gallery1 ,augsburg4    #adc            
,sassoferrato1 ,church of ,s4 ,sabina1  
,rome4    #add ,accademia1 ,florence4   
#ade ,uffizi1 ,florence4    #adf ,der   
,goldene ,schmiede4    #adg ,munich4    
#adh #a ,maccabees xiii4 #ea4    #adi   
,revelation vii4    #aej #b ,esdras ii4 
#de4    #aea ,chaucer1 ,the ,second     
,nonnes ,tale4    #aeb ,a4 ,venturi1    
,storia dell' ,arte ,italiana4    #aec  
,ibid4    #aed ,rat4 ,off4    #aee ,s4  
,cecilia1 ,uffizi4    #aef ,accademia1  
,venice4    #aeg ,dante4    #aeh        
,rubens1 ,uffizi4    #aei ,piero della  
,francesca1 ,uffizi4    #afj ,at        
,heidelberg4    #afa ,,ss4 ,annunziata4 
#afb ,belle ,arti1 ,siena4    #afc ,lord
 ,lindsay4    #afd ,opera del ,duomo1   
,siena4    #afe ,sterzing1 ,rathaus4    
#aff ,opera del ,duomo1 ,siena4    #afg 

,uffizi1 ,florence4    #afh ,w4 ,menzel1
 ,christliche ,symbolik4    #afi ,die   
,sinnbilder und ,beiworte ,mariens in   
der deutschen ,literatur  und           
lateinischen ,hymnenpoesie des          
,mittelalters4    #agj ,rome4    #aga   
,ibid4    #agb ,recherches sur l'origine
 du ,blazon et en particulier la        
,fleur-de-,lis4    #agc ,ragalium       
,franci1 ,libro duo1 #aede4    #agd ,in 
possession of ,sir ,j4 ,tobin4    #age  
,s4 ,chiara1 ,naples4    #agf           
,westminster ,abbey4    #agg ,psalterium
 cum ,figuris1 ,bib4 ,national4    #agh 
,roman des ,trois ,plerinages1 ,bib4 ,s4
 ,genevive4    #agi ,st ,martin in      
,vignes1 ,troyes4    #ahj ,germanisches 
,museum1 ,nuremburg4    #aha ,scenes    
from the ,passion1 ,alte ,pinakothek1   
,munich4    #ahb ,edmund ,g4 ,gardner1  
,florence4    #ahc ,louvre4    #ahd     
,uffizi1 ,florence4    #ahe ,first part 
of ,king ,henry ,,vi1 ,act ,i4 sc4 ii4  
#ahf ,trial of ,jeanne d',arc1 #adca4   
#ahg ,florence4    #ahh ,rome4    #ahi  

,at ,gaeta4    #aij ,british ,museum4   
#aia ,south ,kensington ,museum4    #aib
 ,imperial ,gallery1 ,st ,petersburg4   
#aic ,alte ,pinakothek1 ,munich4    #aid
 ,collection ,mrode1 ,brussels4    #aie 
,spanish ,handbook1 first edition4      
#aif ,lower ,church1 ,assisi4    #aig   
,uffizi1 ,florence4    #aih ,pantheon1  
,rome4    #aii ,uffizi1 ,florence4      
#bjj ,belle ,arti1 ,siena4    #bja ,,ss4
 ,annunziata1 ,arezzo4    #bjb ,museo di
 ,s4 ,marco1 ,florence4    #bjc ,uffizi1
 ,florence4    #bjd ,vatican1 ,rome4    
#bje ,cathedral1 ,s4 ,giminiano4    #bjf
 ,national ,gallery4    #bjg ,spedale   
degli ,innocenti1 ,florence4    #bjh    
,lives of the ,painters1 ,titian4       
#bji ,diptych of ,jeanne de ,bourbon1   
,muse ,cond1 ,chantilly4    #baj        
,collection of ,prince ,u4 ,radziwill1  
,berlin4    #baa ,royal ,gallery1       
,berlin4    #bab ,british ,museum4      
#bac ,british ,museum4    #bad ,w4      
,menzel1 ,christliche ,symbolik4    #bae
 ,dies in ltiti1 ,neale's translation4  

#baf ,the large transparent vase which  
stands beside the ,madonna with  the    
,child1 by ,jean ,perral1 in the        
,louvre1 contains iris1 the white  lily1
 lily of the valley and columbine4      
#bag ,duccio di ,buoninsegna1 ,national 
,gallery4    #bah ,giovanni di ,paolo1  
,vatican4    #bai ,andrea ,vanni1       
,collection ,saracini1 ,siena4    #bbj  
,ambrogio ,lorenzetti1 ,belle ,arti1    
,siena4    #bba ,uffizi1 ,florence4     
#bbb ,sacchetti4    #bbc ,museum of     
,padua4    #bbd ,vatican4    #bbe ,belle
 ,arti1 ,siena4    #bbf ,the ,cathedral1
 ,arezzo4    #bbg ,sermon on ,ezekiel4  
#bbh ,sermon on ,amos and ,zachariah4   
#bbi ,tate ,gallery4    #bcj ,in the    
collection of ,miss ,hertz1 ,rome4      
#bca ,pinakothek1 ,munich4    #bcb      
,milton4    #bcc ,botticini1 ,accademia2
 ,school of ,botticelli1 ,accademia4    
#bcd ,carotto1 ,s4 ,eufemia1 ,verona4   
#bce ,alte ,pinakothek4    #bcf         
,rossello di ,jacopo ,franchi1          
,accademia1 ,florence4    #bcg ,luca    

,signorelli4    #bch ,rathaus1          
,sterzing4    #bci ,uffizi4    #bdj     
,uffizi4    #bda ,frankfort-on-,maine4  
#bdb ,s4 ,spirito1 ,florence4    #bdc   
,yrj ,hirn1 ,the ,sacred ,shrine4       
#bdd ,wallraf ,richartz ,museum1        
,cologne4    #bde ,uffizi4    #bdf      
,goldene ,schmiede4    #bdg ,huysman1   
,la ,cathdrale4    #bdh ,collection of  
,lady ,jekyll4    #bdi ,tate ,gallery1  
,london4    #bej ,lower ,church1        
,assisi4    #bea ,accademia1 ,florence4 
#beb ,uffizi1 ,florence4    #bec        
,goldene ,schmiede4    #bed ,die        
,sinnbilder und ,beiworte ,mariens in   
der deutschen ,literatur  und           
lateinischen ,hymnenpoesie des          
,mittelalters4    #bee ,uffizi1         
,florence4    #bef ,spiritual ,grace4   
#beg ,pinacoteca1 ,arezzo4    #beh      
,lives of the ,painters1 ,signorelli4   
#bei ,cathedral1 ,perugia4    #bfj      
,accademia1 ,florence4    #bfa          
,collection ,pierpont ,morgan1 ,america4
    #bfb ,kaiser ,friedrich ,museum1    

,berlin4    #bfc ,cologne4    #bfd      
,cologne4    #bfe ,w4 ,menzel1          
,christliche ,symbolik4    #bff ,oratory
 of ,s4 ,bernardino1 ,siena4    #bfg    
,vatican4    #bfh ,national ,gallery    
7now attributed to ,botticini74    #bfi 
,vatican4    #bgj ,vatican4    #bga     
,cathedral1 ,bagno di ,romagna4    #bgb 
,accademia1 ,florence4    #bgc ,robert  
,browning4    #bgd ,alte ,pinakothek1   
,munich4    #bge ,uffizi1 ,florence4    
#bgf ,now in the ,pinacoteca1 ,lucca4   
#bgg ,ecclesiasticus xxiv4 #ag1 #ah1    
#bj4    #bgh ,cant4 ,cantic4 iv4 #ac4   
#bgi ,in ,collection of the ,duke of    
,devonshire4    #bhj ,cremona4    #bha  
,museum1 ,verona4    #bhb ,a ,sienese   
painter of the ,franciscan ,legend4     
#bhc ,upper ,church1 ,assisi4    #bhd   
,capella dell' ,arena1 ,padua4    #bhe  
,capella ,baroncelli1 ,santa ,croce1    
,florence4    #bhf ,s4 ,girolamo        
,spello4    #bhg ,cathedral1 ,como4     
#bhh ,alte ,pinakothek1 ,munich4    #bhi
 ,rijks ,museum1 ,amsterdam4    #bij    

,archologia1 vol4 #de4    #bia ,villa   
,masr1 near ,treviso4    #bib ,s4       
,domenico1 ,siena4    #bic ,the name    
,catharine1 it will be remembered1 is   
from the ,greek  ,katharos1 which has   
the same signification as the lily1     
i4e41  purity4    #bid ,luini1 ,s4      
,maurizio1 ,milan4    #bie ,s4          
,francesco1 ,assisi4    #bif ,royal     
,gallery1 ,berlin4    #big ,national    
,gallery1 ,london4    #bih ,seville     
,cathedral4    #bii ,rome4    #cjj      
,ghent ,cathedral4    #cja ,collection  
,gardener1 ,boston4    #cjb ,berlin4    
#cjc ,paradise ,lost4    #cjd ,vatican4 
#cje ,brera1 ,milan4    #cjf ,uffizi4   
#cjg ,museum1 ,brussels4    #cjh ,belle 
,arti1 ,siena4    #cji ,belle ,arti1    
,siena4    #caj ,ibid4    #caa ,uffizi4 
#cab ,goldene ,schmiede4    #cac        
,uffizi4    #cad ,lives of the          
,painters4    #cae ,joos van ,cleeve1   
,royal ,gallery1 ,brussels2 ,wolf       
,trant1 ,national  ,museum1 ,munich4    
#caf ,florence4    #cag ,imperial       

,gallery1 ,vienna4    #cah ,museum1     
,rouen4    #cai ,alte ,pinakothek1      
,munich4    #cbj ,kaiser ,friedrich     
,museum1 ,berlin4    #cba ,the #8,chigi'
 ,madonna1 ,collection ,gardener1       
,boston4    #cbb ,w4 ,menzel1           
,christliche ,symbolik4    #cbc ,museum4
 ,colmar4    #cbd ,german ,museum1      
,nremburg4    #cbe ,kunsthalle1         
,karlsruhe4    #cbf ,royal ,gallery1    
,dresden4    #cbg ,national ,gallery4   
#cbh ,museum1 ,berlin4    #cbi ,vatican 
,gallery4    #ccj ,capitoline ,museum1  
,rome4    #cca ,national ,gallery4      
#ccb 8,for as ,jonas was three days and 
three nights in the whale's  belly2 so  
shall the ,son of ,man be three days and
 three nights in the  heart of the      
earth0 7,matt4 xii4 #dj74    #ccc       
,vatican ,museum4    #ccd ,uffizi1      
,florence4    #cce ,uffizi4    #ccf     
,accademia1 ,florence4    #ccg ,pitti4  
#cch ,florence4    #cci ,german ,museum1
 ,nremburg4    #cdj ,vatican ,gallery4  
#cda ,ibid4    #cdb ,dr ,anselm ,salzer1

 ,o4,s4,b4 ,die ,sinnbilder und         
,beiworte ,mariens in  der deutschen    
,literatur und lateinischen             
,hymnenpoesie des ,mittelalters4    #cdc
 ,mrs ,henry ,jenner1 ,christian        
,symbolism4    #cdd ,vatican4    #cde   
,belle ,arti1 ,siena4    #cdf ,town     
,museum1 ,solothurn4    #cdg ,belle     
,arti1 ,siena4    #cdh ,accademia1      
,venice4    #cdi ,brera1 ,milan4    #cej
 ,national ,gallery1 ,london4    #cea   
,sermon on the ,assumption of the       
,virgin4    #ceb ,isaiah iv4 #b4    #cec
 ,imperial ,gallery1 ,vienna4    #ced   
,town ,museum1 ,bruges4    #cee ,dom di 
,bartolo d',asciano4    #cef ,,ii4      
,esdras ,,ii41 #ai4    #ceg ,,ii4       
,esdras ,,ii41 #ah4    #ceh ,rat4 ,off4 
of ,altars4    #cei ,ad4 ,nat41 #b1 #c4 
#cfj ,spiritual ,grace4    #cfa         
,imperial ,gallery1 ,vienna4    #cfb    
,jos ,antolines1 ,alte ,pinakothek1     
,munich4    #cfc ,murillo1 ,prado1      
,madrid4          ,,just ,,published    
,,the ,,childhood ,,of ,,art2 or1 ,the  

,ascent of ,man4 ,a ,sketch of the      
,vicissitudes of his ,upward ,struggle1 
based chiefly on the ,relics      of his
 ,artistic ,work in ,prehistoric ,times4
 ,by ,h4 ,g4 ,,spearing1      ,m4,a41   
,queen's ,college1 ,oxford4 ,with #af   
,plates in ,colour and      nearly #ejj 
,illustrations in ,black and ,white4    
,royal #hvo1 #ba_/-      net4           
,,bible ,,ways ,,in ,,bible ,,lands3 ,an
 ,impression of ,palestine4 ,by ,,maude 
,m4 ,,holbach1 author of 8,dalmatia1 the
 ,land where ,east meets ,west40        
,with ,thirty-two beautiful             
,illustrations from ,photographs taken  
by      ,otto ,holbach4 ,crown #hvo1    
#e_/- net4      ,this interesting volume
 records the author's impressions of the
      ,holy ,land4 ,she shows the       
unchangingness of the ,east1 sketching  
for those who cannot visit ,bible ,lands
 the landscapes and the      people1 and
 describes the customs of everyday life 
that our      ,master drew upon to      
illustrate ,his spiritual teachings as  

they      are to-day--that is1 almost   
exactly as they were nineteen hundred   
years ago4 ,the book makes a strong     
appeal to ,bible students4              
,,francia',s ,,masterpiece3 ,an ,essay  
on the ,beginnings of the               
,immaculate ,conception in ,art4 ,by    
,,montgomery ,,carmichael1 author       
of 8,in ,tuscany10 etc4 ,with #aj       
,plates4 ,crown #hvo1 #e_/- net4        
,,the ,,flora ,,of ,,the ,,sacred       
,,nativity3 ,an ,attempt at collecting  
the      ,legends and ,ancient          
,dedications of ,plants connected in    
,popular      ,tradition with the ,life 
of ,our ,blessed ,lord from ,his        
,nativity to      the ,flight into      
,egypt4 ,by ,,alfred ,e4 ,p4 ,,raymund  
,,dowling1 ,b4,a41 ,st      ,john's     
,college1 ,oxford4 ,demy #hvo1 #g_/f    
net4      ,,legends ,,of ,,our ,,lord   
,,and ,,the ,,holy ,,family4 ,by ,mrs   
,,arthur ,,bell4 ,with      #cb         
,illustrations from the ,old ,masters4  
,crown #hvo1 #f_/- net4                 

,,kegan ,,paul1 ,,trench1 ,,tr,,bner    
,,co4 ,limited                          
,,edinburgh                             
,,colstons ,,limited                    
,,printers          ,transcriber's      
,notes      ,punctuation1 hyphenation1  
and spelling were made consistent when a
  predominant preference was found in   
the original book2 otherwise they  were 
not changed4 ,in particular1 spelling   
variations in quotations of  archaic    
text and poetry were not changed4       
,simple typographical errors were       
corrected2 unbalanced quotation  marks  
were remedied when the change was       
obvious1 and otherwise left  unbalanced4
    ,illustrations in this e,book have  
been positioned between paragraphs  and 
outside quotations4 ,in versions of this
 e,book that support  hyperlinks1 the   
page references in the ,list of         
,illustrations lead to  the             
corresponding illustrations4    ,the    
phrase 8to face page0 have been removed 
from the ,list of  ,illustrations and   

the caption area of the illustrations1  
as the  illustrations are positioned    
within or adjacent to the pages         
referenced  in the ,list of             
,illustrations4    ,the index was not   
checked for proper alphabetization or   
correct page  references4    ,footnotes1
 originally at the bottoms of pages1    
have been collected1  renumbered1 and   
placed after the ,index4    ,a painter's
 name is spelled 8van ,eyck0 in most of 
this book1 but as  8van ,eyke0 on pages 
#bgi-bha4 ,both variants have been      
retained here4