I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, says the Lord, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.
Revelation 1, 8
I, John … was on an island called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. … and I heard behind me a loud voice, as if a trumpet, which said: I am the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last; what you see, write in the book …
Revelation 1, 9-11
Illustration from the Toulouse Apocalypse dated 1220-1270. (Municipal Library of Toulouse) If we remove the fantastic monster from it, then what will we see? Quite realistic depiction of two warriors of the "chain mail era", dressed from head to toe in chain mail hauberk and highway. Moreover, they do not even have helmets on their heads, although a warrior with a crown on his head is dressed in a very simple surcoat. “The crowned horseman uses the technique of kushin the spear, and the one behind him strikes with both hands at once, but this is more of an artistic technique intended to enhance the impression of the hardships of this duel. In almost all miniatures of this time, the knights look exactly like this with only some variations.
"Apocalypse" - as a plot for colorful illustrations
It is important that the text of the "Apocalypse" in Western Europe has been known since ancient times, that it was copied and illustrated many times by the authors of medieval manuscripts. Moreover, its content opened up great opportunities for illustrators to demonstrate both their imagination and their own skill as a miniaturist. The book contains images that have become a topic for numerous theological interpretations, and fertile subjects for the videoization of text images - four horsemen, six seals, seven angels with seven trumpets in their hands, seven bowls of God's wrath, and everything else in the same way. All descriptions of apocalyptic monsters, all sorts of horses with lion heads, are given in the text very detailed - just take it and draw, you don't need to invent anything. So in this regard, "Revelation" for the then illustrators was a real find.
Another miniature from the same manuscript. Here, however, the riders sit on lion-headed horses spewing smoke, but in all other respects we see the complete equestrian equipment of this time: characteristic chair saddles with protrusions embracing the rider, girths and stirrups (although for some reason the artist did not draw spurs, but should …). All the riders are wearing surcoat, and what is especially significant - we see their clearly "spherical" and somewhat disproportionate heads. And so it was necessary to draw them, because at that time a quilted cap was put on without fail, and only over it - chain mail!
Armor and weapons from many "Apocalypses"
But that they could draw absolutely precisely, so … yes, yes - the weapons and armor of those characters who belong to the human race, because for them they were … contemporaries, because until the Renaissance, people had no historical thinking at all. That is, they understood that some events were "long ago", but this "long ago" was a purely abstract concept for the same illustrators - they had no idea about changes in material culture and fashion and tried to convey only as accurately as possible the realities of their era.
The third miniature is from the same manuscript, and here we see warriors with swords and servillera helmets. However, the most interesting thing about this miniature is the metal shin cover for the middle of the warriors. Considering the time when this manuscript appeared, we can conclude that such overhead armor for the legs already existed then, although not everyone wore them yet!
View and Compare
As in the case with the images of the same David and Goliath, we have before us a typical, albeit somewhat peculiar, "time machine in pictures." Time changes - the images of warriors in miniatures also change. We compare them with other miniatures in other books of the same time, by other authors and in other countries, and we see almost everything the same. Volumetric effigy sculptures confirm plane images in books, and artifacts found by archaeologists confirm both what is drawn and what was once sculpted out of stone. And since the number of books and miniatures in them is simply incalculable, it is obvious that such a number of “fakes” would simply be impossible to create in less time than they were created … gradually, year after year, century after century.
Well, and most importantly, looking at these pictures, we can most clearly imagine the development of medieval weapons throughout almost the entire Middle Ages!
"Apocalypse", on which they worked for 22 years
Above we have already got acquainted with the miniatures from the Toulouse "Apocalypse". Now let's take a look at some equally interesting illustrations from The Apocalypse of Douss - a manuscript dated to the third quarter of the 13th century, and which is currently in the Bodleian Library at Oxford University. It is believed that it was written by order of Edward, Prince of Wales and the future of England Edward I and his wife Eleanor of Castile. Moreover, work on it lasted for 22 years, from 1250 to 1272! The manuscript contains 97 miniatures and just some of them are of particular interest to us. Subsequently, none of its owners were identified until the 19th century, when it was sold to the Christie's trading house by William Wilson in 1833. In the same year, it was bought by Francis Douce, who, before his death in 1834, managed to bequeath it to the Bodleian Library at Oxford University.
A miniature depicting typical riders of the "chain mail era" with their felchens to the right and left of unarmed people. Please note that the artist was not too lazy to depict a figure in the center with a helmet-bowl on his head, thrown off his hand from the chain-mail mitten of the figure. That is, the armor is depicted very accurately. But the frightening-looking felchens seem to be a clear artistic exaggeration.
Well, but this miniature is still, let's say, "funnier" and, moreover, more informative than the first one. Although we have foot soldiers in front of us, most of them have knightly weapons, and on their feet they have a novelty of that time - knee pads made of "boiled leather" with an embossed ornament! On the head of the soldier on the left, conducting a conversation with the devil, an obvious bascinet is put on and a hard collar is visible on his neck. Those characters of the miniature, on whom there are no helmets, are all dressed in caps. Among the flags of Satan's army we see the flag of Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester, who opposed Henry III. Such was the kind of PR in the Middle Ages. (Bodleian Library, Oxford)
Here we see an illustration from Queen Mary's Apocalypse, which was created in London and dates from 1300-1325. (British Library, London) It depicts a duel with a dragon, and the beast is destroyed, and chopped with an ax, and stabbed with a spear, and shot from a crossbow … But the most revealing weapon in this illustration is of frightening size and very original form of felchen. Note that very few felchens themselves (or falchions in our national historical and linguistic tradition) have survived to this day. They can literally be counted on one hand. But here they were depicted in miniatures where as often!
Another one of the same felchen. Apparently, the artist who designed the "Apocalypse" of Queen Mary had a weakness for such a weapon, or considered it the most suitable for the fight against Satan.
Chain mail at that time could look like ladies' knitted dresses. In any case, they fit the figure like a glove … "Apocalypse" of Queen Mary, 1300-1325. (British Library, London)
The host of Christ comes out to fight Satan. Another illustration from the same manuscript. The riders wear typical knightly attire, including knee pads. Needle spurs, which have not yet turned into "stars" and "wheels" at this time, are very characteristic. Interestingly, the blankets on horses even cover their ears!
There are also horsemen here, but already "hellish". However, look at their armor and weapons - all this is quite consistent with their time. And if you do not pay attention to their vile faces, then everything else looks completely realistic. By the way, we have before us the manuscript "Trinity of the Apocalypse" 1250 - 1260. from St. Albans in England, which is today in the library of the University of Cambridge. By the way, on the first rider there are very outdated chain mail greaves, used in the days of Guillaume Bastard, but with embossed leather knee pads.
This illustration from the same manuscript shows interesting details of the depicted armor. Although on the king closest to us we see the most modern armor of that time, including a kneecap and an overhead greave, his shin chainmail cover, as on the previous miniature, is of a very old pattern. That is, before us is clearly a very "economical warrior". Like, what I inherited from my ancestors will work for me too! The highly raised shoulder of the surcoat suggests that under it there may be a cuirass made of "boiled leather". After all, it is obvious that the fabric is backed up by something solid!
This illustration shows a beautiful depiction of a crossbow, including its trigger, and a single-toothed pickaxe, traditional, judging by the numerous depictions of that time, for the Middle Ages in general. "Trinity of the Apocalypse" 1250 - 1260 Saint Albans, England. (Cambridge University Library)
Typical knight (and his spur with an "asterisk") "Canonical Apocalypse", 1320-1330. Peterborough, England (Bodleian Library, Oxford)
A very rare (in any case, I came across it for the first time, although I have already seen hundreds, if not thousands of such images) illustration from the "Apocalypse" of 1350 from Savoy in France. (National Library of France, Paris) On the left, we see a warrior in typical armor of this time, including a bascinet helmet with a buckled chain mail mantle. But … at the same time, he is not wearing a jupon, and thanks to this one can see that the chest of his chain mail armor is covered by a convex cuirass! Of course, it is difficult to say whether it is made of leather or metal. But the fact that in 1350 such cuirasses were already there is no doubt!
Thus, miniatures on the subjects of the "Apocalypse" are a valuable source of information about the warriors of the XIII-XIV centuries.
