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Illustration of military interest from the
Douce Apocalypse
Attack on the Holy City; the Casting into Hell
A larger image of Attack on the Holy City; the Casting into Hell, Douce Apocalypse.
Shelfmark: Bodleian Library MS. Douce 180
Folio/page: 56v/p.88
Title: Apocalypse with commentary (known as the 'Douce Apocalypse').
Date: c. 1265-70
Place of origin: England, London?
Languages: Anglo-Norman
Description: Attack on the Holy City; the Casting into Hell. Among the flags of the host of Satan is that of Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester, who had opposed Henry III. The imaginary arms of Satan with three toads occur twice. |
Important miniatures (in various stages of completion, partly drawings). Made perhaps at Westminster, for Edward I before his accession in 1272. | Slide roll title: MS. Douce 180. "The artist at work" in the unfinished "Douce Apocalypse". | Material: Parchment
Source: Digital Bodleian
Referenced as figure 198 in Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350, Western Europe and the Crusader States by David Nicolle.
198A-E Apocalypse, Canterbury, c.1270
(Bodleian Library, Ms. Douce 180, Oxford, England)
A-F — ‘Defeat of Satan’s army before Jerusalem’, f.88; E — ‘The Devil leads Gog and Magog against Jerusalem’, f.87. This splendidly decorated Apocalypse was made for the future King Edward I. It clearly includes some fantastic elements, but the bulk of its arms and armour are real enough. The Devil’s army is equipped in standard fashion but with a clear emphasis on infantry rather than on aristocratic cavalry. This probably reflected current opinions about the uncivilised ‘hordes’ of Gog and Magog. Almost all figures wear relatively short mail hauberks with integral mittens, only one lacking these. Mail coifs also seem to form an integral part of these hauberks. Mail chausses are shown in a number of conventional ways, most but not all being worn inside shoes. One interesting example (B) clearly lacks foot-covering mail. This could indicate that some of the other mail chausses ended just below the ankle and did not go inside the shoes. Most figures have knee and thigh-covering cuisses, most but not all of which (B) have round poleyns attached. Some of these cuisses may also be scale-covered (E) though this seems unlikely. Short sleeveless surcoats give no indication of being padded or lined, but two figures do seem to have stiffened collar defences (D and E), one of which has Magog written on it. Such collars inevitably, recall on the padded soft-armours of the Maciejowski Bible. Shields are small and flat-topped, some being quite pointed (A and B), others less so (C). Some have almost round bases. Helmets are mostly of the chapel-de-fer war-hat variety with relatively small brims (A and E). One even has an incongruous and probably fanciful nasal (E), brimmed helmets with nasals not otherwise being seen until the late 14th century, in Italy. Others are simply round (C) and weapons include normal swords, some worn in ‘sinister’ fashion on the right hip. Spears, war-axes of exaggerated size (E), a kind of pickaxe (E), and an apparent pitchfork (E) are also seen.
