Thursday, February 09, 2006

the Master of the Bitch

2 comments:

ZB said...

He's bigger than his horse. Unless he's riding a shetland pony the artist needs to go back to art school.

Moominmama said...

The illustration is taken from the Ellesmere ms of the Canterbury Tales, circa 1410, and is one of the earliest examples of English portrait painting. This depiction of Chaucer the Pilgim is believed to be based on a bust of the poet, and is the earliest known portrait of him. They style is typical of the period, with the most significant elements of the image enlarged for emphasis, almost charicature-style. The horse is not important, and is therefore smaller. Bite me.