. English: An early wheel of fortune from an illuminated psalter, by William de Brailes. The original is at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, ms. 330, Fortuna sits enthroned in the middle, turning her wheel, while roundels at the outer ring of the image show figures at the conventional four positions. Clockwise from left: a youth, ascending, says 'I am borne again to the stars'; at the top, a seated king says 'I exalt on high'; at the right, a falling figure laments 'Reduced, I descend'; at the bottom, a dying figure says 'Lowest, I am ground by the wheel'. Inside the outer ring are tw
. English: An early wheel of fortune from an illuminated psalter, by William de Brailes. The original is at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, ms. 330, Fortuna sits enthroned in the middle, turning her wheel, while roundels at the outer ring of the image show figures at the conventional four positions. Clockwise from left: a youth, ascending, says 'I am borne again to the stars'; at the top, a seated king says 'I exalt on high'; at the right, a falling figure laments 'Reduced, I descend'; at the bottom, a dying figure says 'Lowest, I am ground by the wheel'. Inside the outer ring are twelve half-roundels. These show twelve ages of man, from infant at the bottom-left clockwise through senescence and finally death, at the bottom-right. Inside that cycle are eight more half-roundels with scenes from the life of Saint Theophilus the Penitent. His story begins at the top-right, where the humble archdeacon declines election to bishop. Moving clockwise, he subsequently changes his mind and makes a Faustian bargain to reclaim the post, shown at the bottom of the wheel. Later still, he repents and the Virgin Mary appears to intercede for him, and he dies redeemed, at the topmost image. The three cycles illustrate the life of man as shaped by fortune, by time, and by choice. circa 1240. William de Brailes (fl. from 1230 until 1260) Alternative names William De Brailes Description English manuscript illuminator Location of birth Brailes (?) Work period between circa 1230 and circa 1260 Work location Oxford Authority control : Q8020766 VIAF: 42640982 ISNI: 0000 0000 5603 6943 ULAN: 500010129 LCCN: n92049528 GND: 119118513 WorldCat 1257 Wheel-fortune-ages-of-man-theophilus-wm-de-brailes-c1240
Size: 2132px × 2345px
Photo credit: © The Picture Art Collection / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: (fl., ., /., 1, 12, 1230, 1240., brailes, circa, de, william
