É. Apor (ed.): David Kaufmann Memorial Volume: Papers Presented at the David Kaufmann Memorial Conference, November 29, 1999, Budapest.
ORMOS, István: David Kaufmann and his Collection
DAVID KAUFMANN AND HIS COLLECTION the enigmatic ornamentations of a mediaeval German altarcloth dating from the end of the 13th century, the so-called Zehdenicker Altartuch, one of the treasures of the Märkisches Museum in Berlin. 16 4 The problem requires further investigation. In the accompanying medallion, in Midler's and von Schlosser's view, the female figure can be taken to represent the idealized love of mediaeval German courtly and knightly love, Frau Minne, with crown and sceptre, sitting in the flowering branches of a tree and holding a falcon on her left hand. Narkiss and Sed-Rajna recognize in this figure the labour of hawking or the flower-bearer characteristic of the month of Siwan."' 5 In Sed-Rajna's opinion the man is wearing a crown. Perhaps rather a falconer's cap? In general, both motifs - the falconer/hawking and man/woman with flowers - were common for April-May-June and August. 16 6 Sed-Rajna stresses that the female figure may hark back to an antique prototype, that of Rosalia, too, representing the awakening of Nature. 16 7 The fantastic representation of Cancer, perhaps betraying Oriental influence, is also remarkable (fig. 11): "a hybrid animal composed of a wolfs body and head, a griffon's paws and a fish for a tail" 16 8 - this type of representation is unique to our manuscript, it cannot be found anywhere else. Next to it we see a man digging the soil as the labour of the month of Tammuz 16 9 - while the representation of Scorpion as a tortoise (fig. 12) should not surprise us, because an illuminator living in the vicinity of Lake Constance at the beginning of the 14th century may not have had the faintest idea what a real scorpion looked like - the labour of the month of Marheshwan is the vine harvest. 17 0 It may be noted in this context that the representation of Scorpion as a tortoise among the signs of the Zodiac was common in contemporary Christian art, too. 17 1 The combined sign of Aquarius and Capricorn radiates a certain rustic atmosphere with the beautiful sweep (draw-well) and the kid quenching its thirst from the bucket (fig. 13). Next to it we see in two medallions a sower and a peasant "holding up a boot while warming his bare foot by the fire, above which hangs 16 5 Loc . cit. See also SED-RAJNA 1983. 34. 16 4 Gotthard STROHMAIER, Arabische Astrologie auf dem Zehdenicker Altartuch = Jahrbuch des Märkischen Museums 4 (1978) 105-108, 204 (Abb. 31). '"MÜLLER - VON SCHLOSSER, Bilderhaggaden 1898. 117. NARKISS - SED-RAJNA 1988. Tripartite Mahzor, vol. I. Card Nos. 13-15. 16 6 See STROHMAIER-WIEDERANDF.RS 1999. 33, 40, 47, 50, 59, 69. "'SED-RAJNA 1983. 37. "'NARKISS - SED-RAJNA 1988. Tripartite Mahzor, vol. I. Card No. 16. "'MÜLLER - VON SCHLOSSER, Bilderhaggaden 1898. 117-118. NARKISS - SED-RAJNA 1988. Tripartite Mahzor, vol. 1. Card Nos. 16-17. 17 0 MÜLLER - VON SCHLOSSER, Bilderhaggaden 1898. 118. NARKISS - SED-RAJNA 1988. Tripartite Mahzor, vol. I. Card Nos. 24-25. 1, 1 SED-RAJNA 1983. 34. 161
