Art historian with an interest in visual messages
Parrots emerged as symbols of status in Europe after Alexander the Great brought them from India. Initially viewed as divine for their speech, their trade was primarily controlled by Arab merchants. Subsequent explorations expanded knowledge of various parrot species, including those from the New World, which became prized possessions among the elite.
Just over twelve months ago I posted a short article on a painting held in a private collection. The owner describes his painting as ‘A unique, mysterious, unrecognised, unidentified painting’. The owner has a dedicated website (a link is in the footnote)[i] in the hope that someone will identify the subject matter, artistic attribution and provenance. … Continue reading Solve the puzzle of this 16th c painting for a £5,000 reward! An update.
For those of you who have visited Westminster Abbey's gallery displaying various treasures of our ancient abbey, you may have well have failed to notice an illuminated manuscript known as The Cramp Ring manuscript. In 2006 when I was researching my Master’s dissertation I was allowed to photograph the whole manuscript and the images of the… Continue reading The Good Friday Ceremony of the blessing of cramp rings and the curing of the King’s Evil
When undertaking a study of both European history and art history, it is essential to understand the way people of that period thought. It is one of the first things you are taught at university and for this you do need to delve into the classical texts and understand the various major events that affected all… Continue reading The influence of Renaissance learning on the visual arts
Melanie V Taylor 