CHAPTER 1
PICTURING SAME-SEXDESIRE:THE FALCONER
AND HIS LOVER IN IMAGES BY PETRUS
CHRISTUS AND THE HOUSEBOOK MASTER
DianeWolfthal
T'he cttnsrquctttrs <tf uisualizin.q lrarr-r.gru-s-sirr
sexual dcsirts drc fldu)t. This clmptcr
in!6tildt6
nn) lruiously atruo.qni:cd dcltirtituts tlf--t,rlrc--sc.tdcsirc, Pttrus C/rri-rrrrslr
(loldsrrrith's Shop arlri tht' Hotscltottk tWisrcrlrFalconer, and ansidtrs tlrc rtspttnscs
tltcy tni.qhtlnvc t'lkitcd.
chirpter will explore two previously unrecognized images of
fhis
I srnre-sex desire,Petrus Christust Couplc in a Coldsnith's S/lrrpand tl.re
Honsebook Master'.sFalconer,which both enrploy the fllcon rs r sign of
love (figures 1.1 and 1.ti).' These works have never been satisfactorilv
explained.Much has been written :rbout the Coldsmith\ S/rrrp,a canonic;rl
work within the field of northern renaissance
is chrrrart.but thc literatr.rre
rcterized by uncertainry debate,ancl contradiction, precisely becausc r.ro
one has been able to nrake senseof the n-rysteriousmale couple depictcd
irr the rnirror in the right forelyouncl (figure 1.2).The I'^alrortcr
is less s'cll
known, but the few studies th:rt discuss the prilrt disuriss it too c:rsilr:
thereby rnisinterpreting it. Both works :rre part of a conrplc\ cultur.rl
history of sexualiry that is just now being written, which explorcs thc
conceptualizationof heterosexualand honrosexr.ral
desirc,ancl shous ho*'
they became constructedas oppositesin the West, with one dctlned as the
18
PICTURING
DIANE WOLFTHAL
SAME-SEX DESIRE
10
norm and the other as deviance.2 Furthernrore, these irilrges deuronstrate
that love between men is implicated in the history of urarriaue, an institution that became the privileged site of heterosexuality.Yet these works
also reveal that although some images reinforce the idea of sodor.rryas sin,
others, to quote Jacqueline Murray, "extend beyond a litany of prohibitions
and condemnations."3
one problem in discussing this topic is how to identily images of
sarrre-sex lovers. As'Warren Johannson and william A. Percy have observed,
homosexuals were difficult to recognize visually because they were generally forced to live in "a state of outward assimilation." Unlike Jews or
prostitutes who were required to wear visible signs of identification' men
who loved men became "the invisible ones," and were not marked by any
outward sign of di{ference.a For this reason they are often difncult to identify in works of art. Furthermore,until rhe rise of gay studies in the 1980s,
art historians were by and large not open to the possibiliry that art could
depict same-sex love. But it is precisely because art historians have until
recently failed to consider the possibiliry ofinterpretations based on sexualiry that it today presents such a potentially fruitful category of analysrs.
This chapter contributes to the growing number of recent studies that
embrace that goal.s It will not explore homosexual self-definition, or the
acts and practices that accompanied it, but rather will be concerned with
the cultural representation of sexual desire bewveen men'
Petrus Christus's
Couple in a Goklsmith\
Shop
The arrist and date of the coldsmith\ shop are securely known, since the
Latin inscription at the bottom of the painting reads,"Master Petrus Christus
made me in the year 1449" (figure 1.1).6But the function and nature of the
painting are disputed. Some scholars support Peter Schabacker'sproposal that
it was co-missioned by the silver- and goldsmiths'guild of Bruges for public display in their chapel, which was renovated in the same year that the
painting was complered.T According to this theory, it represents St. Eloy,
patron saint of gold- and silversmiths, and served as a vocational painting,
much like Roger van derweydeni St. Luke Painting the wrgin.E others, however, have recently quescioned the basis on which this theory rests and suggested instead that the panel is a genre painting that served a non-devotional
function, perhaps in a shop window or guildhall''
Scholars generally agree, however, that the painting concerns two
themes. First, it focuseson the goldsmith and his wares,advertising not only
the skill, but also,to use Erwin Panofskyt term, the "social usefulness"of
such craftsmen.l0 Hugo van derVelden has recently argued that the painting is purely secular,lr bur, even if the goldsmith is not identified as St. Eloy,
1.1 PetrusChristus,Couplein a Goldsmith\Shop,1449.Newyork,The Metropolitan Museum ofArt, Robert Lehman Collection.
the panel's religious aspectsare evident. It displaysboth secular and sacred
objects along the side wall,12 and draws the viewert attention to the ring
that the goldsmith weighs, which played a critical role in rhe rituals surrounding the holy sacrament of matrimony.r3
The focus on marriage, the second theme of the panel, has long been
recognized. The idea that the standing man and woman represent a
betrothed couple was originally proposed in the early nineteenth century
.rnd has been supported by almost all later scholars, including Max
Irric'dllnder, Erwin Panofsky,and Peter Schabacker.raThe painting shows a
rtt:rn and a woman who have entered a goldsmitht shop to purchase a ring,
DIANE WOLFTHAL
PICTURING
SAME_SEX DESIRE
the woman underlines the
which is being weighed in the foreground;
her hand toward the scale'
importance oi this action by extending
on the counter to the left of the scale
Furthermore, promrnently displayed
by the groom to the bride'1s The man's
ir-" girdl", commonly p""nld
with the woman; he stands quite
oose confirms his intimate relationship
his arm around
his head toward her' and tenderly puts
;r";;;:;
This gesture appears in marriage
h.., ,.rri.rg his hand on her shoulder'
and Isabella' dated 1'526'and
ti.it as a relief of ETp".lot CharlesV
p."*Ut,
an engraving by Master E'S'' dated
also in images of lovers, inch-rding
a garden of love'16 Other aspectsof the
ca. 1450,which shows couples in
refer to marbelong to the constellation of motifs that
idnd.tg -ry also
that recurs
gesture
sword' a
mant left h""-d g'"'pt the hilt of his
iJg" fi.
and the money on the counter may refer
in images of grooms
"'d "'itoi', marriage entailed'17
exchange that
io ,tt""..""otic
girdle'van derVelden agreed that
Noting the presencelf th" tittg and
wedding'18 but he questioned whether
th" pri.ttitg, ,ho,,ld be linked to a
themanandwomanwerebetrothed,suggestinginsteadthattheyrepresent
identified the woman as
.f Guelders and an escort'Van derVelden
i*""
painting was comher wedding took place the year that the
tutrry t
".rrrr"
wears the coat of arms of Guelders on
ot"t"d, and becausehe' cornpanion
were
if the
his neck'Van derVelden further argued that
11an
;;;;i;
";.""d
thewoman'sfianc6,hewouldstandontheleft'butEdwinHall'inhisstudy
that the man often
of betrothals and marriages' demonstrated
oir-"*",
a Flemish brooch' dated ca' 1430-40'
,pp.rrr"o., the right' For example'
whichnrayhaveservedinlieuofearnestmoney,andaGermanpaintingof
show the woman to the left of her
U.iJ"f .oopl", dated ca' 1470' both
"
by Christus' the man's gesture and
fianc6.1eFurthermore, in the painting
suPport the idea that they share an
the closenessof the couple's stance
intimaterelationship.VanderVeldenconcludedhisarticlebycautioning
yet he cites no
allegorical readings,',20
scholars to..favor genre over unique,
of
representations
escort' By contrast'
other examples of a woman a"d het
of
preponderance
In short' the
and ma,,ied couples are numerous'
and
man
the
that
""grg"a
the conclusion
evidence and scholarly oiit'io" supports
marriage'
for
themselves
woman are readying
painting' but they have never been
A second couple appears in the
in a rrruch smaller scale at the margins
adequately explained' Rtp'"""t"d
are depicted as reflections in a mirror
of the composition, the t-o -t"
the space of the painting' since it
(figure 1.2).The mirror servesto expand
showsthestreetoutsidetheshop,andalsorecallstheconvexlookingglasses
so that shopkeepers could- detect
that were employed as securiry devices
fulBut Schabacker proposed that the mirror also
;;;;;i#,.'1
mar
spots
water
and
function; he argued that since cracks
sy;o[c
nif.a
"
1.2 PetrusChristus,Couplein a Coldsmith\Shop,1449 (detail).New York, The
MetropolitanMuseum ofArt, Robert Lehman Coliectron.
its suface, the painter is criticizing the couple reflected in it.22Although
rrrost scholars accept this theory van derVelden again disagrees.He questions whether the mirror is spotted,23but one spot is clearly visible,just to
rlre right of the two men (figure 1.2).He further ridicules the idea that
such objects served as symbols, but the falcon resting on the perched glove
DIANE WOLFTHAL
P I ( ] T U R I N C ;S A M E _ S E XD E S I R E
of the man in the rnirror dcrnauds an explanation, since such birds were
not paraded through ciry streets,but rather reserved for the hunt, which
took place in the countryside.2a
Schabackerjustly interPrets the round mirror as a symbol of the'world.25
Spotted and cracked, and reflectins the street outside the shop,r" it constructs the imperfect, sinful state of earthly existence. Scholars gerlerally
(irrelde.s, which connects him to
that court.33what distinguishesthe
bridal couple from the pair in the mirror, then, is not their class.
Schabacker offers a second proposal, that the falcon sy'r-rbolizes,,oride
.rrrrl rapaciousness."34
This argu'rent is urconvincing as well. If thc two
c.uples are constructed as opposites, as 'rost schr>larsbelieve,
then
\chabackert theory would be valid only if the bridal co'ple showed
modcsty and hurniliry attributes that are contradicted by their aristocraric
bearirrq and expensivedress.
My i'terpretation, like panofsky's and Schabacker'.s,hinees o. the
rrrc;rningof the falcon, and links it to the two central t]re'res of the
pai'trrrs,that is, marriage and the social usefulnessof goldsr-niths.Since
the tinre
.iovid, the hunt has servedasa metaphor for pursuitsof a sexualnature.35
firis 'retaphor was not er'ployed solely to refer to heteroscxual activitics.
I.hn Boswell observed that the hunt figures pronrinently in ho'roerotrc
l)()etry, and Italian fiftee'th-century chivalric literature similarly linked
lcisure activities-such as hunting-with
same-sexdesire.j(,In particular, in
rrrcdievaland early nroderr art and literature the-falconwas a colnnlon
synrlr.l of love, accordi'g to Mira Friedr'an, who co.cludes,"scenesof hu'rrrrq, falcons, and falconry were allegories of Love, whether Love as
sin or
thc highest courtly ideal."37lleate Schnrolke-Hasselurann
notes that in thc
( ().rtly love senre the lalcon represented the 'rale lover
in ge'eral and his
qcrritalsin prrticular.-rsMichael canrille devotesa section
of a recent book
,,, TItc x'IedieualArt ttf Lrtue to irnages of the falcon, ternlins
the bird the
"l,re-eninent" erotic
symbol.3eHe susseststhat falcons b.-..n.,. siglnsof
l.r'e through their associationwith the aristocracy,a'd because of
the way
tlrcv were trained, with the handler gradually forging an intimate relation'lrip rvith the bird, which he treared with great sensitivity
and patience,
rrrtrchlike the ideal lover.l')
Three aspectsof images of falcons are noteworrhy. First, they fail to foll"*' a sinsle iconographicerlpattern, but rather ensage the farcon
in diversc
'rrrtl inraginative ways.+l Seco'd, inrages of the falconeq shown
with or
rr ithout a companion, are often constrLlcted as analogo.rsand interchange'l'lc rvith depictions of lovers. For exarnple, a Flenrisrr casket,
daicd
',r' l-l(x), shows rrvo cornparable nrotifs: a lalconer and
his lady to the left,
rrr,l r couple e'rbracing to the right (figure 1.3).a2A third feature
of fal'.r)rv imagery is that the falconer and his co'rpanion are
uenerallyshown
.r r'uch'rore
restrained manner than the couples with whon-r they
"'
,r, .juxtaposed.Note how the casketshows on the right a couple
locked in
' r'.rssionate
embrace,who kissardently (figure 1.3).The lady nestlesin hc'r
, 'r 1'rlsarrns, sits in his lap, and is encor'passec'lby his
bocly,while trees to
' rrlrt'r side bend their trunks a'd arch their leaves
to for'r a frrme thar
'()r(ls thc pair together.By contrast,the falconer
and his lady on the lelt
22
accept the idea that the nen reflected in the n-rirror are lirrked conceptually to the betrothed couple, and this is supported by visual evidence-The
figure on the left in each pair is dressedir.rbrighter and warmer colors, and
wears a larger, tnore ornate headdress than his or her cotnpanion'
Furthermore, rhe man on rhe right in each couple turns his head slightly
toward his partner.
Scholars generally agree that these two pairs, which echo each otl.rer,
were designed in opposition, that the uren in the tlrirror represellt a negative r.nodelthat conrrastswith the ideal bridal couple.27Moralizing through
contrast-or, as Meyer Schapiro puts it, through "paired carriers of opposed
comrnon in the visual culture of northern Europe-2s
meaning"-*as
Crucifixions and Last Judgments frequently construct oppositions by
showing the virtuous on the heraldic right side and sinners on the heraldic
left.2e Such contrasts were employed in representations of lovers as well.
Images of youthful, handsome couples, for exan.rple,often show on the
reverse the same pair depicted as corpses.3t'In short, thc sn-rallsize of
the men, and their marginalized location in a cracked nrirror situated in tne
lower heraldic left corner of the corlposition, support the idea that they are
being denigrated through the use of contrast, a col'nnlon rhetorical
device.
If most scholars accept the idea thar the nren in the mirror are designed
to contrast with the bridal couple, they disagree as to what the nature of
the difference is. The function of the pair has always rested on the mearling of the falcon. Panofsky described the falcon as a "time-honored symbol of the leisure class"and following him, Joel M. Upton ernphasizedthe
courtly aspect of the urale couple.3l Indeed falconry was an exclusively
aristocratic activiry but the bridal couple is equally noble' according to
Margaret Scott, who points to reset'nblancesbetween theil clothing and
that of Isabella of Portugal, the duchess of tsurgundy, and nrenrbers of her
court.32The wotnan wears an expensive pearl-studded headdressand gold
brocade gown rnd her fialrc6 is dressedin a ve]vet doublet, fur-trimmed
jacket, elaborate gold r-recklace,and, pinned to his chaperon, a luxurious
brooch cornposed of four pearls surrounding a ruby, which is attached to
a pendant drop. Such attire is far fronr the urore sober and nlodest garnlents
of bourgeois craftstueu, such as the goldsnrith depicted in the painting.
Furthermore, hanging fronr the fianc6's chain is the coat of arnrs of
)7
24
P I C ] T U R I N CS A M E S E X D E S T R E
DIANE WOLFTHAL
2I
Ioseph Manca, who began by pointing to Marco Zoppo'.s dr:rwing, which
rcvealsthe nature of rr,vostanding men, by showing therl with putti whose
plrry alludes to anal penetration (figure 1.4). Manca then explored sinilar
ligures depicted in religious works.a6One includcs an uumistakable sign of
Iovcmaking, the chin-chuck gesture, but this is lacking in other works
(frgure 1.5).Theseinsteadshow men apart fronl thc rest of the scene,who
st:rnd close to each other, one slighdy behind the other; rt tillres one man
1400'London' British Museuur'
1.3 "Talbot" casket,Flanders'ca'
bet'uveen
tree in the composition stands
do not even touch ancr the only
Nor
figules'
servins to divide the two
tl.renr,its straight tt"r'k "td foliage
exrlrples
other
Friedman discussesa series of
are these images exceptional;
to
courpanion are portrayed as equivaient
in rvhich the falconer and his
'no:::,l'
t"
more explicitiy depicted'rt
couples whose lovem'fti"g "
is consistent with other representatlons
nirror
image of the two men rn the
erotlc natlrre
falcon functions.to signal the
of the falcon (figure 1'2)'The
sexuality is not explicitly depicted;
*ito'"
of the coupl.t ,.t'tio,t"t'"p,
irnages
are unique is not unusual for
that the specifics of the iconography
of falcons.
of
not only the discreet character
The reticence of this inage parallels
of
the
art (figure t ':; i'ut also
'breviry
heterosexual falconers - "otittt"l
rn
that
in Bruges-Marc Boone concludes
legal records of 'odo"'ly cases
to
Netherlandish scribes well .reluctanl'
opposition to Italian iractice'
possible
as
preferred to proceed as quickly
describe the crime in detail and
was often
throughout Europe sodorny
fact'
to other rypes of cases'14In
great
with
only
referled to
.,,l,p"'k"ble lnefandissinra]'and
described
"*
reticence.li
r
- r - couple
^ ^ . . - l - rn
of falcons make clear that the
If northeln H'uropean iluages
depictions
desire' then Italian lenaissance
the mrrror represenrs""tt-'J"
wor-uan
and
the main figures' the man
elucidate their relationship to
of
research
the
interpretation r-estson
purchasing a wedding tutg' tuty
I
Marco Zoppo, Plq,ing Prrti, rnid*fifteenth century, drawing. London, British
\ lIl\cul11.
PICTURIN(;
26
DIANE WOLFTHAL
SAME-SEX I)ESIRE
27
l.5Ercolede'l\oberti,FotrrMiracleso-fSt'VinccntFerrari'IlJOs(detail)'Vatican
Museunrs,Pinacotcca'ScaleArt Resource'NewYork'
State.Vatican
featuresappear in Christus's
turns his head toward his conrpanion'All these
does not include cavorting
painting as well (fillure 1.2)'Aithough his panel
as do the Italian works' it does
prrri, rii. chin-chuck gesture,or linked xrms'
images' but was cor.nmonly
iirptry a notif that was orlritted in the Italian
the falcon'
employed in northern art as a sign of love:
relevant to a discussion of
particularly
is
thlt
work
one
Manca discusses
Family (Doni Tondo)'ca' 1503-04
rhe Coldsmith\ Slrcp,Michelangelo's Holy
a large represerrtationof
(figure 1.6).This painting 'ho*l i" the foreground
either side' nude youths'To the
,n. Hofy Family, and i,t iht b"tkgtound' to
of a col-npanion who embraces
right, a young lllan star,d' bttween the legs
pulls his drapery' To the left'
him across the chest while a third nude
other' Although a series of
two youths lounge rn close proximiry to each
has been proposed' the theory
alternative interpretatrons for these figures
to the puriry of
that they ..p.es.nt the sin of sodonry in contraclistinction
not only anrong scholars
the Holy Family has gradually gained currency
also all1ong authors of major
*hor. p,rbli.ations focus on gt studies' but
such as Charles de Tolnay and
critical monographs o'.t tvtithtl''.'gelo'
I 6 Michelangelo,Holy Family(DoniTitndo),
ca. 1503-04.Florence,Uf[izi. A]inari
A:'t Resource.NewYork.
William E.Wallace.aTFor this reason,it seemsplausiblero accepr rhe idea
rl)rt the nude youths in Michelangelot Holy Family, like the same-sex
,,rtrplesin the other paintings studied by Manca (figure 1.5), representthe
'rrr of sodomy and the "decadent world of paganism," to use Manca's ternl,
rrrd that they function as a foil lbr the holy figures who, by conrrast,
.r'rrrbolize the new Christian era and the path to salvation.l8
Critical for our discussion is the fact that Angelo Doni commissioned
\lichelangelot painting on the occasion of his marriage to Maddalena
PICTURINC
28
SAME SEX DESIRE
2r)
D]ANE WOLFTHAL
sin of sodomy
'l
The iurase' then' contraststhc'
Strozzi in late 503 or 1504'ae
visual
of rnarriage through the
-distinction
with the holy sacrament
rnarriage of Joseph and
,n.1'tht-jdt'l
berween the homoerori.-yorr,tt,
Like the
to honor the Doni-strozzi rvedding'
Mary in an it'uase p'"attt"a
marriage'
for
is employed as a foil
Coldsmith\ Sltop,same-sex desire
rvere
homosexualiry and heterosexuaiiry
that
Recent pr'rblit"ttort' 'how
fourteel-rthlate
B' Keiser notes that the
at tiil1es contrasted' Eiizabeth
constructs heterosexual and homoCleatules-s
century Midclle English text
the
the one, clean' naturai' and procreative'
sexr"ralacts as btnary ";p;;i;tt'
otherfilthy'agalnst''".'.",andsterile.Sheconclude,...6/ga111te.i-s,siegitinra_
logically
i' linked to' and to a degree deper.rds
tion of heterosexual a"'i'"
for
other
each
take
against tnen who
upon, a rhetoric of intolerance
ti're
at
produced
sixteenth-century poems
lovers."5" Sirrilarly, several
a choice
and satne-sexdesire;one posits
French court contrast heterosexual
blonds
aux
jeune
{rls
"""
LCcltd Ladyl 11d.
between a "Bonne ';;
with biond hairl'''
cheveux" [a yor"ing man/son
' A sixteenth-centtlry
rnarria'qe
was linked
More specifically,sodonry
.to
are enacted
court condemns rn:irriages that
poem produccd at the f'"'-tth
corcludes
poet
the
coupiing' L-r fact'
as a subterfugc to perrnit homosexual
tiratthereall'trarrragelaretheSame_Sexrelationships:..(Jrrhot.trnreil'autre
'ran 'rarries anorher / and
la f.',-r-J u i".rrr" s,aillie" [o'e
se marie /
Cady justiy
"t
statement tmplies' as Joseph
wonlen sirnilarly mate]' This
relationship
endnring
can produce an
observes,th"t ,.r-rr.-r"l attractior-r
such altercondenus
poet, however,
much rike l-r.r.ro*"".r.r m"rriag..Th"
as analoInen
errvisiorredlove between
native arrangenents'J-A;;ists'ioo'
nrid-frfteenth
the
in
by Marco Zoppo' dated
gous to marriase' A clrawing
man's finger' while a third
; ring
centLlry,shows a *'-;;;;
.on."-toti'"'
in the
'Z;' Since this clrar'vinsappears
figure standsU.,*.t'l"t-tt''"ingu'Jf
by
drawing
the
as
tlt"'iy honroerotic' such
same codex as others that are
*
generaily
(figure 1'4)' this.imrge is
Zopponlentioned earlier
:::1n,:'O
to
srmrler
is
Indeed its cor-nposition
a witty parody of traditional "t"ti'gt'
rvhich often show a priest standing
those of conventronJ;;il"*
"t'-t't''
bride'53'Jeffrey
groolrr presents a ring to the
between the couple as the
the
holnosexuality'
and
l]nk between narriage
Richarcls l-rasnoted another
n-Larriage'5+
of
absence
desire arose in the
medieval belief that same-sex
to
preached that tnen r'vho failed
exarlrplc''
for
San Bernrrdino of Siena'
FIe cautioned:
marry would become sodor-uites'
and a leqitir.nate
-Woe
tarkea wife when he hasthe tinre
to hirn rvho doesl-t't
take this as a
And
tl-reyb.ttt'ltl sodonrites
reasotrl For t"'-tttt'-tt'-'gsin*lc
healtl'r rvho
good
ln
'Whttt
and
age
r-ight
yott see a nran the
general lule
becn
already
hasn't
it asa.bad signabout hini' if he
do"rn', ,"kt t *iL';l;
-"
practicin!!chastityfbl spiritualreasorrs
,i
rt
r.l
I I Marco Zoppo,Rinq Err/rar1gc,
mid-flfteenthcentury,drawing.Lonc'lon,IJritisir
\ I uscunr.
As rve have seen, San Bernardino was not alone in believing th:rt men
, lr()oseeither nurrialle or sexlral relationships with other men, ancl for this
rL,r\oli homosexualattraction presc'ntsan obstacleto ntarriage.His scrntons
Lr'\'cclto reinforce negative thinking about s:rr-ue-sex
desire and Christus'.s
,,rrplc tur-rctionsin a sirnilar:nranrler. Shown in srn:rll scale in the open
l,rtt oithe street.dcpicted at the margins of the plinting:urd on the sicle
rrrrstoftefl associatedwith sin, and reflecteclin a spotted and cracked
30
DIANE WOLFTHAL
with the bridal couple. christus
mirror, rhe 'ren forr.n a striking conrrasr
of matrimony' The
the si' of sodonry to the holy sacralrent
;;;;,
by markers of hetsurrounded
wornan'
giJonr-ro-lr. who standsbeside a
whereas the
n.rasculiniry
erosexualiry represents the "proper" it:dt]
:f
condemned'i('
is
that
choice
a sinful
marginalized couple po""y'
F u r r h e r n r o r e , i n b o t h M i c h e l a n"of
g e l o ' , s H o l y F a n i l y a n d t h e c o u p l e i nthe
.a
,rr'tr.-,.* desire appears within
coldsntith\ s/rop, this criticism
Foucault's thesis that in preof ,.t.trr.i.g", which supports Michel
-'n,.*,
regulated by a systern of alliance that
modern titnes, sexual practices were
5T
turned largelYon the fanrilY
Bruges' Marc Boone
Sodonty was r crtttcal issue in fifteenth-century
of sodomites ir.r
executions
1515'
and
notes that, between the years 1385
bodily punishrnents-t ttttlt-:1t^-tn*
Bruges con.rprisecl15 pt"e'lt of all
centres for the repression of
places l3ruees alllong the "most importatlt
of society ret-naineduntouched by
sodonry."58Fttrthermore, '-'o "g"-tt'l'
uren and women' young and
included
this persecution; convicted 'odollit"'
groups who frequented
r-trar;Sitrai
fronr
old, citizerrs and fbrergners, those
ofsociery such
echelons
upper
the
bathhouses and taverns,and those fro'r
of the duke's
son
the
and
godson
s
who was Duke Philip
1r" "f U"rterke,
even durins
hinself'
",
char"rcellor
the
Cltttnq one casein which
char.r.rberlain'
of sodomy'
case
a
in
intercede
the siege of Ncuss, took tir-ne to personally
honosexual
in
engaged
who
those
of
Boone co'cludes that the ..pr.rrt.,
and
statesought to control its citizens
actswas one of the ways in which the
documents-and none survive fronr
consolidate its power' Contemporary
thehandofthoseconvictedofthecrirlle-viewlronrosexualactsasa..vi]
and detestable crime agalnst
et detestable crlesnle contre nature" fvile
law code' Philip
contelllporary
staniard
naturel, to cite one p"ttpnt''fne
of those.conpunishment
capital
the
Wielant's Practiikecrininele,called for
both divtne
against
offense
an
as
victed of sodotny, and viewed the crime
Potter'
Dirk
and
poet'
Netherlandish
Praet, an Early
o.d...t";,"
."iifrft.
sa^nle-sex
condemned
severely
also
*ho ao*po.ed a discourse on love'
the fifteenth century' "fears of
desire.t"' Boone concludes that during
inragination in Bruges'"6r
sodonry had mken hold of the collective
trials rvere prosecuted in the
sodonry
In particuler, several important
1440s,thedecade,,-'*h,.h.Ch.istusproducedthecoldsrrrirlrSslrtrp'Janof
Uutkerkewasarrestedinl44l'an<Jintheyearinwhichthepaintingwas
a high-ranking Burgundian ofhcial'
completed, f ++1, C;osw1n De'Wilcle'
within Christus's own circles'
was executed for the offence' Moreovcr'
stake for having a sexual
at.,tl-re
a pair.rter,Jacob de Jonghe, was butned
,elationshrp with a saddler,JehanCaudron'"'
large work' over three feet hiS;h'('l
The Go/r/-srrir/r!Slrop is a relatively
publicly displayed'If so' it is likely
w's
it
that
and scholarsg",l"tttiy
""tnle
P I C T U I I I N G S A M E _ S E XD E S I I I . E
31
to have contributed to the demonization of honrosexuals in Bruges-"+ By
constructing the two rren as small, marginalized,:rnd depicted in the lower
heraldic left corner within a cracked and spotted nrirror, Christus may well
hrve reinforced prejr.rdiceagainsthornosexuals.('5Hc llso devised a strategy
fbr their containnrent. Although the compositiorral line fronr the woman's
f:rce through her left arnl to the goldsmith'.shlncl brings rttention to the
nrale lovers, Christus encapsulatesthem within thc nrirror, portrays them as
nrere reflections, and situates thern outside the goldsrrrith'.sshop. Christus
constructs sallle-sex desire as the antithesis of nrarriaqe and therefore a
threat to the social order. This interpretatior-r reinforces the two thenres
of the paintine: the social usefulness of goldsmiths-they help fortif'
nrarriage-and nrarriage itself. Displayed in a gr-rildhallor on an altar, the
plnel was designed to function as a celebration of the social contribution
of goldsmiths, who as upholders of "family values" sell rings and other
objects used in weddir.rg rituais. Christus'.spainting is a large work, which
h:rsa religious context, and was produced rnd publicly displayed in a centcr of sodonry persecution. For these reasons,we should not be surprised
that it constructs nlarrixge as the nornr, and honrosexualiry as deviance.6"
fhe ColdsmitlrlsS/rop is breathtaking in its rich coior, close attention to
detail, con-rplex construction of space,subtle treatnrent of light, and the
rnood of stillness and tranquiliry which is broken only by the cracked
rrrirror. But the panel's bear.rryshould not blincl us to the fact that it is
rnrplicrtcd in the repressionof honrosexruls."T
The Housebook
Master's Falconer
lly contrast, no criticisnr is expressedin another Early Netherlandish image
trt- sanre-sex desire, the Housebook Master'.s Falc<tn.cr,
a drypoint dated
,;r. 1485 (figure 1.8).('sAlthough Max Lehrs called the print The Falconer
,utd His Companittrt,which leavesopen the nature of the couplet relation'lrip, nrost later publications preferred the title The Fakoner and His
Ittettdant,which views the rren's relationship primarily in socioeconomic
tr'nrls.(")But in an ItalianTarot card, the falconer and his servant lack the
I'h!'sical intimacy seen in the Housebook Master's irnage and their social
\r.rtr-lsis sharply diflerentiated (figure i.9).7" The Tarot card focuses on
tlrc aristocratic falconer, who stands in the center foreground, occupies
ilr()rc space than his servant, and wears rnore expensive clothing. But the
llousebook Master does not diflerentiatethe classof the two figures,nor
,l,,es he constrllct one as subservientto the other. I{rther, the two men
,t.rrrrlarm-in-arm, one holding a stick used to beat the prey out into the
,'l)cn, the other with the leashesof three hunting dogs wrapped around his
,rrrr ;rnd a frlcon perched on his gloved hand.
I)IANF- \\1()I F fIIAI
l2
k
p
f"d
i'$
f -t',trr
IiI ti
I
t
1S
Hottscbi'ok
tlrrpoillt'
N l ' t s t c t " 1 - ' t L r ' i r r ' re' ' r ' l l l i 5 '
Alttster'i'Ltti l\t1k'trtrts''Llttl
\i{i
":-*,
-./l\'tll
./-li
\
i
i
Ig--.
'.\r'r
/J\l\
'\,'
;
I'
EF"I
\ 1 , r s t c r r r l - t ] r c F . s e l i c r - J , r r o c r ' l r i . 1 r t / , , , r ; r ' 1c . r I 1 ( r 5 . c i r q i r rrrr q . W r s l r i r r g t o r t
, r r , r l( i . r l l e l v o f - , A l t . l { o s c r r l . r l r l ( l o l i e e t r o n .
l4
DIANE WOLFTHAL
this is an image of
however' that suggeststhat
It is not ouly the falcon'
in his hair, which'
wreath
on the right wears_a
same_sexdesire.The rl1an
his companron
addition'
sy'-'-'bolof love'7j ln
like the falcon, was a standard
Furthermore'
hand'
left
wlthtis
fingers the young "l"n '"tkt's'''ggesti"ely
close to the
is
couple
fris itiighs'rhis
Ut*!J"
a large phallic clagge"t*'
depict
often
which
studied by Joseph Manca'
Italian image, of 'oao-ltts
1'5)'This
({igure
legs
and a swordbetween the
men with arms entwined
lovers
of sexualiry in images ofheterosexual
marker
last motif is a conrnlon
van Meckenem' and others'72
by Albrecht Dtittt, L'"hel
held in the
love' Lehrs terned the feather
One final motif refers to
lures'
contemporary
other
aot' not resemble
falconer's hand a lure,7:rt""*
wfen^lufed
that
so
feathers attached to a string
which consist of a fan of
Kok deemed the feather
*"^ttJ'tJan Piet Filedt
the illusion of flight *
the
The feather may refer to
"mysterious;'t"t' otrt'J iJ "tpi"""tlo'r'75
Heinrich
by
engraving
an
of Lascivia in
hunt, but it is also the attribute
curved
But rather than the flufTy'
Aldegrever, dated 15+9-('fig""-''tOl'tt
is
feather
frlconer's
the
in Aidegrever's print'
piume held by the *";;;
its phaiiic context'
,nd ,tifi^'which better suits
i;;4,
coninches high' has been repeatedly
five
This precious p""tj;;";;tn
tn^:
drypoints
of
It belongs to a group
il-:nclnectecl to a courtly rmlieu'
as a set into.the
i+g0s, ind *"r. t.p, rogerher
,rr"
'"
courtry the'res, a",.
public consumptton'
prints were not nrade for
nineteenth centLlry' These
which
chose the technique of drypoint'
Rather, the Housebook M'"'tt'
David
engraving'
or
than
produces many fewer impressions.
,woodcui
edi"tiny
in
issued
were
tj"i-ate that such prints
Landau and Peter t""i"it
i"
smallet
a
even
lor.r-t .opit', perhaps
lYTb-"t
tions,, of no more than a
yields fewer
have been made of tin' which
;tt
this case,since the ni;;"
the Master's
that
suggests
,rr.r"1 .opp... This
impressions thrr-, tt . -or"
been as
have
uay
'and
'
with a mass market'
clients "had nothing to do
painter- at the time'"77
exclusive as that of any court
t"
courtly patronage' Th1 Flt'utu -tlt:t
to
points
Other evidence
tonal effects'
proa"tta dehcate and subtle
unusuaily n"t t"trl""q""t';*t
He drew
court'
the
to
by the artist are connected
Furthermore, other works
for the
poet
court
a
by
which was translated
the frontispicce for a 'ot"ttt'
is
his
and
at Heideiberg'
-!11s1book
Elector Palatine, Pil;;;;incere'
III'78 Furthercourt of Emperor Frederick
intimately to'-t'-tttttd''o the
duling
produced
works
the
iike so many in
more, the falconer's costume'
elonelegance:
fashionable
shows the height of
his so-called .""" ntti"l'
of this
also
is
subject
rypical
slashed'ltt"ti'Tht
gated shoes,tight h;;;' ;;
Falaneis
aristocratic'ie In short' the
exclusively
is
it
group of *o'k'
t"^":"ut*t
conlectiol'
"'-"t
the Masters
Jt'
'"irtt'
technique'
""a
audience'
"V*, tntt""ft"'p""f
produced fol an aristocratic
was
patrons, suggest
PICTURIN(}
SAME_SEX DESIRE
35
1.10 Heinrich Aldegrevcr',Ldstiuia,15'19, engraving. O Kupferstichkabinett.
\raatlichc'Museertzu IJerlin PreuBischerKulterbesitz.
l(eith Moxey has concluded that the Housebook Master's drypoints
,lLrrl-rgthis period represent a visual response to courtly ideals.80The
( ()uple in the mirror, rvho are dressedand act like noblenen, are nlembers
r,l'r group thatJeffrey Richards has assertedwere stronllly associatedwith
'otl611y throughout the Middle Ages.El'We must conclude, in this instance
rlrcn,that same-sexlove was consonrnt with the courtly ideal.
It is interestinll to compare Filedt Kok\ treatn.rent of this print to his
',.rtilngs of the Housebook Master'.simages of heterosexual lovers, who
r1'o often wear wreaths, carry hr-rnting sticks, and are f,ccontparried by
t rlt ons and hunting dogs. Filedt Kok, writing of the Departurc-for the Hun.t
tiqure 1.11),concludes,"wreathsof leavessuggestthat two of tl'reparticiI'rnrs are betrothed"and notes that"the hunt was long associatedwith the
rr,,1i1v11
sf courtly love."s2 Similarly, a drarving showing a wreathed young
PIC]TURING SAME-SEX I)ESII{E
I)IANE WOLFTHAL
36
4*
s"&,
a
f{
t'9:
]'
{r
.;l
.,1_
W
{z:f
1.11 Housebook Mastcr'
datn,Rijksnlltseutn'
Ar.tistet
Dcltrrrtttra
'fitr tltc Hrrttt'
ct
l+85-90' dtvpotut'
t '^'"
l.1l
''ll
o
"
g o t , r ' n rsp i t h l : a l n t t S c u - f r o n B c l i i r i d ,c a . l ' 1 8 - 5 ,
H o n s e b o o k M : r s t e r , S t a r i d i t i .L
Ir.nr,ins. Leipzig, Museur.t.tdcr bildcrrclen Kiinstc.
n r a n w i t l - r a f a l c o r l r v l - r o r v a i k s b c s i d e a \ \ i o 1 l l : lel t 1
i s' 1u2)
ue
c lThe
u i v of:rlconer
callytitled
'8't
;;;,, fiottrRchirr'l (figur
standittg Lottrs tritlt F,,l;;,,"
M:rster\ itnages of
t-t-"ttl-' lik" thc Housebook
uncler discussiorl looks
attd His Attettd(1t1t
Kok crlls thc pritrt Falrorrcr
hetLrrosexll;rllovc'rs'yet Fileclt
the preseuce of
trotes
he
Lor''t'r'Althor-rqh
rather than Falcotttt'""'i-i"
though l1o \\roilln
hc taiis to exphir-r it' evetr
the "eusrseulent wrcrth";
"sornethir-rqn1}rste1-rcrer.narkstl-ratt1-rcreis
rppears in the print. srrrrir.rry,
the othel ilran's
":rsscrtive"rval, in rvhich one ullt-t tottches
rious,,about the
ncqlects to
to thc' pr'rzzle'*] He also
jacket, but he ofters t'to solution
rrcntion the m:rnt dagger',althor-rghl simil:rrly placccl dagger in the Vrrrrrg
\latt atrd Dcatltts describeclas"looking suspiciouslylike a phrllic syllrbol."35
llLrt thele is consic-lerableeviclence for supl-rosinethlt the falcotter ancl his
, ()nrpanioll are lovers: tl're preseuce of the falcolr, the feather, tl're lvreirth,
rlre linked ;u'nrs,the gestLlreof firnriliarity,and the daggerbctween the legs.
I rlccltKoki reticcnce is understandablcconsidering that hc was writing irt
3rl
I)IC]TURIN(] SAM E_SEX 1)ESIIIE
DIANE WOLFTHAL
treata time when little had been published in the area of gay studies.His
year
the
19^8(r,
nrent is rypical of rhe seneral srare of schoiarship prior to
was published'8{'
thatJarrresSaslow'sCanyrr edc in the Rertaissance
Unlike rhe couplc in the Goldsntith\ shop,the Fakttnerdoes not condenrn
irrterthe ltontosexualcouple.but ratlrerlervesthe door open for I po:itive
the
n]ucl]
in
pretation of same-sex desire.In fact, by showing this couple
as
nlen
between
,rr-r"r.*"y as heterosexual lovers, the artist constructs love
attitude
positive
an equivalent option.sT Three factors help to explain the
high'
.*pr.rr"d in thii work. First, the Falrcncris s'rall, lessthan five inches
secpureiy
a
a.ri ,o designed for private viewing' Second, the work shows
tnetnbers
probably
ular subject.Third, those who purchased this print rvere
enJoy
of the court, and so nray well have possessedgreater freedom to
homoerotic works than other art patrons'
Seeing the Invisible
r-rot
Fifteenth-century Netherlandish images of honrosexual desire include
Fakonerbut
Master\
Housebook
tl.re
only christus's coldsmith\ s/rrp and
in
also a miniature visualizingJupiter's yearnings for a youthful Ganyrnede
beautiful
of
illunrinations
and
Cod'
a trranuscript of Augustine's Citlt of
yollths and embracing nronks rl"rrt Michael can.rille has recently explored
rangc
within the contexr of rhe Duc de Berry's love lbr youn{ uren.A wide
o[
group
this
charactel'izes
viewpoints
of subjects,functions, contexts, and
SInp
Coldsnith\
the
commissioned
The patron or patrons who
ir.,]ages.r8
But
,-,rry *.il have had a particular nteaning in mind for the painting.
the
saw
viewers
other
Whcn
patrons cannot control audience response'
their
upon
bear
to
attitudes
and
work, they brought their orvn collcerns
understancling of the inrase.'we lack accounts of contelllporary responses
Early
to the rvorks rhat we have discusscd in this chapter, but since
sa[Ie-sex
toward
feelings
in
its
unifornr
Netherlandish sociery was far fi'ont
rnany
desire,viewers may well have had a range of reactions.Undoubtedly
others
couple.
male
the
of
understood and supported the condentnatioll
with
nlay not have understood the tnessage,because they were r.rnfar-niliar
the
ignored
have
may
others
Still
tl.re coded neaning of the fiiicon.
lovers
nrale
of
visualization
in
the
reveled
intended lressage and instead
the
within a public imase. soDre nray have vierved the men frarned within
otl-rer
unlike
Indeed,
identity.
nrirror as a positive ntarker of honrosexual
level'
contemporary inrages of sarne-sex desire, the painting' on sonle
in
situated
lre
observers,
lovers.we.the
irrvitesus to tdcnri$r with the rrralc
couple:
male
the
as
action
sanre
the
the same location and peform
we srand outside the goldsnrirh's shop and look in. But rvhat the fifteenthbuying
century vlewer saw was not simply a goldslnitl'r'sshop, or a couple
39
rr weddire ri's, but also nrare lovers stroiline through
the city streets,
displayinga falcon, an e'blem of love. In this respect
the paner reseurbles
the Housebook Master! pri't: botl.r serve to 'r:rke the irvisible
visible.
Notes
l
rhis essayis basedou a p:lper th:rt rvasfirst prcsrrrtrtrrt trrc
coilese Art
Associatior.r
conventior.r
i'February 2001 and later.revist,tl
firr thc.,Scei'g
(lender"conGrenceinJanuary2r\o2.r rvourcl
likc to tli;rrrkErrrrrrlgarlpbcll,
I\obert Mills, lnd Anne Roberts for organizinu rhescscssions.
I :rrrr,rls,
cxtremely grateful to tlre edit.rs ancl t. Mary.a' Ainsr.,,orth,
Mrrrc lj.ore.
Joan oadden' A'rre l)crbes, Robe't L.A. clark, Sir.rr.n cirrr-rrrr,
cr:ris
Harbison,Martha Howclr, Lynn
Jacobs,caror r)urtlc, N:urL'ttcSllonror,.
and Juliannvituilo for their nr:u.ryhcrpftrlcorrrnrclts.L this
JamcsSaslorv,
essay,
the terr' "falco'er" is rsc'clto rere' to thc persol.lholc.lirretric
bircl
oI Drev-
2. For .r ,,-,n.r,'r'rary
of thc ar{Itrrtrentsag:linst aciopting thc .,vord .,honrosr.xual,,
to refer to the ti'e befbre the 'inetec'tlr ccntury, sce
Abigail S.lo,ror(locleatr,ivlak'Tioullt:A Crisis
irt Reprcsotttttiorr
(London:Th:u1es alcl Huclsor.
1997),pp.26-32.
3. Jlcqueline Murray, "Twice Margirar ard Tivice I,visible:
Lcsbiars i' the
Micldle Aqes," tt Harrdbook of'Mdiu,tl
scxuaritl,,ed.Vcrn L. BLr[ousrr a,d
Jar-nes13rundrge (NewYtrrk: Garlancl, 1996), p. 2or.l I I9 |_ll:l
-l !(/arrerr
Joha'ss.n ancl williarn A. percy, "Ho.r.sexueli ty," ir.rHdtrdrtook ol
' \ l a l i t v l . \ r ' r r , r / i r 1 c' .d . V e r n L . 1 3 u i l o r g h . r r ( r
J a r . c s A . I J r . r , r d . r u c( N c w y o r . k :
( ] a r l a n d , 19 9 r r ) ,p p . I 7 6 - 7 8
[155-891.
5 For recerrt relevart st.dies on r'cclicval and
early nr.dcrn inragcs of
h o n r o s e x u a l ss, e e M i c h a e l c a n r i n e , " ' F o r o u r D c v o t i o '
a'd [)lcastrre,:The
Sexual Objects of Jean, l)uc de Berry,', ,4rr Hrstory
2l (2(X)1): 1(r9_91;
Michac'l ca'rille, Trrc NlcdicuarArt of Louc: oh.jects
drtd sub.jc,s ttl' Dcin,
(New York: Harry N. Abr:rnrs, 199t3), pp. 13t3_40;
Crais Harbison, ,,Tlre
Sextrality of (lhrist in the Early Sixtee'tl.r century in Ger'rary,',
in A.riiltun,
to Rttbt'rtA. Koclt: Studiesin tru, Nortrrcrn Rcnaissanr:a,
ec1.John oliver Harc.
(l)rinceton: I)epartnrent ofArt and Archacokrsv,
1 9 9 4 ) , p p . 6 9 _ 1 3 1 l;\ o b c r t
M i l l s , " E c c e H o m o , " t r t ( ) o t d t r a n d H o r i n c s sM: c t t , w o t t e n
tttd sdints ittLtttt:
fredieual Europc, ed. Sa'ranrha
J.E. l{iches ard Sarah Sarih (Lorrclo.:
I{outledge,2002),pp. 152-73;l\obertMills,"'whateveryou
r)o Isa r)rrislit
t o M e ! ' : M a s c u l i n i r y M a s o c h i s n r ,a n d
play in Represcr)txri()n\
eucc.r
r.il\4.rlc
Martyrdo'r," Exetnplrtrid 13.1 (2001): 1-37;
Janres Sasrorv. /)ir-rrrn,.rrrrrJ
1)o's'srrrrr-s:
A History ql' Homoscxuarity in thr: visunr Arts (Ncr,v vrrk:
Vikirrs,
1999), esp. pp- 76-78,92-95; and
J. Schenk, "Horrr.sr'ksurritcit irr c.re
N c d e r l a n d s e b e c l d e n d e k u r . r s r v o o r 1 t 3 0 { ) , , , S } i c g c lH i s t o r i t r r l
l7 (19f32):
-i76-83. For other works. sec n65.
PICTURIN(]
DIANE WOLFTHAL
See Della C' Sperling"'Petrus Christus"'
6 . "m petrlus] xpi ne fecit a 1449:'
the Mettopolitatt
Mur.ur'.tofArt, 1994)'p' 96 [96-101]'
dcr christlichctt
Loy) von Noyon"' in ly:xikotr
(Rome: Herder'
vols'
8
al
et
'
Kirshbaum
ol,',iurnpt,ir'.d' E"gltbt't
Panofky' Ear\'-Nethulandish Paitttin'q:
1968-76), 6: cols l'22-27; Erwin
MA: Harvard Universiry Press' 1953)'
Its Or;{in artd Charadcr (Canibridge'
^tt
F.
'Werrrer, "Eligius
(Alo"
p. 490, n2.
MctropolitanMusawr tlf
Flernisl.rPortraits 1425-1525:'
i;r;;;;n'.,-,,"Early
revierv of Pctrus
Lome
Art Bullcritt 43.4 (1986): 11 144-641;
^Carrrpbell'
in Burlingtott
NewYork'
ofArt'
Museunr
Clilstusexhibition at Metropolitan
"The South
W
o
i
f
l
U
a
r
t
f
l
Maga:inc 136 (1994): 641 [639-a1];
in Tlrc Robcrt lt]mrcn
Fifteenth ancl Sixteenth Centuries"'
'Cuttrn;r-,
Nctherlands,
Ccntwy Eu,roltcdrtPaintings:Franrc'
vol. 2: Fiftcenlt to Eigltecnth
al'
Cn'at Britaitt' ed.'Charles Sterling et
Ctntrdl Europe'Thc Nethctlantls'i'ttd
65' 67' 69,71
p
p
.
1
9
9
8
)
,
A
r
t
,
o
f
Metropolitan Museullr
t*.*
terrns it the "epitome of secular
"..t.
Hugo van derVelden' who
'Vocational Portrait of
$1-.12a1:and
floyt Petrus Christus's
oaintins," in "Defrockrng St
"
(l()9ft): 24?-76'
C o t d r , t r i t t t ; S i r r t i , , / r r2' tsr
"
Pain t i r t'g'p' 49 0' n2'
i
sh
d
a
n
c
rl
e
th
N
ar
r\'
E
l.rtonty,
Eloy"' esp' pp' 261' 268'
V.rl a..V.ta.rt, "Defiocking St'
Ainsworth and Martens' Pettus Christrrs:
of
reviJw
his
in
1o, fota.r*.f
( 1995) : 27 1 1268 31' c onvincin gly argues
ssattca M ast er, in Sln itrlrr-s23
--7
Rc ttrti
the lid is a reliquary.
object with the pelican on
itrr,,t.
rvedding rituals: see
in toth the betrothal and
3 Ot.*, n,.,t"ned
Mediertal Matriage antl the Etrigna of
Edwin Hall, Tlr AnrclJini Betrothal:
Pres' 1994)'
(Berkeley: lJniversity o[ California
Van Eyrk\ Doublc Pttrtrat
pp' 15' 34' *uo^''L-"^
St' Eloy"'
see van derVelden"'Defrocking
vl
For a sunrmarY ot these "isv/5'
Weale'
(Schlffer'
by van der Velden
p. 250. In acldition to those quoted
Fler-rrish
Bauman"'Early
also
Panofsky, and Schabacker)' sec
ir*afn"a"r,
Ul ntlce in Fiftcenth-Cennry
11;Joel [Jpton' Pclrtrs Clu'isttrs:
p.
Port..itr,"
State Universiry Press'
Pennsylvania
Park:
Flemkh Painting (Universrty
lst Eligiu'"' p' 96; and Wolff' "The South
1990), p. 34; Ainsworth,
Netherlands," P. 70'
p. T0; Ronaldw' Lightbowr-r' Metliaeual
SeewolfT,,.The South Netherlands,"
Albert Museutn' i992)' pp' 306' 382'
arrd
Victoria
EuropeanJeualry(London:
Isabella"'
deur Hause Habsburs: I' Kaiserin
1 6 Gustav Gliick, "Bildnrsse aus
(1933): 1t39'fig' 150'
7
inll/ictt'n's
Sanmilunsetr
Kuttstlfutorischett
Jt irrn der
and the Housebook Master (Master
191 [183-2t)0];Keith Moxcy,"Chivalrv
41
of the Anrsterdam cabinet)," in Liuelicr than Lifc: Tht Mastcr
of'thc Atrsttrdant
cabinet or thc HousdtortkMaster,u. 1170-1-i00, exh. cat., ed.Jan piet
Filcdt
Kok (Amsterdam: Rijksprentenkabinet/Rijksmuseum, 19S5),
pp. 65_7ii.
For this gesture, see also Marcantonio Rainrondiis Apollo,
Hyiinth, and
Annr, 1506, in Bruce R. Snrith, Httt111t5(a11,r1
l)csin, itt Shakupearc\En.glatrd
(cl'ricaeo: Universiry of chicago press,1991), p.2, arcr
rwo vcrsions of paris
Bordorr, Pair ttf Ltucrs, ca. 154(I-50, i'
l)'nkerro.,
Susan Foister,
Jill
and Nicholas Penny, Diinr ttt Verotrcse:Sixtcclttlr]uttnrl, paitrtittg
irt tlrc
National Galle4, (New Haven:yale University Press, 1999),
pp 1{)2_103,
figs.115-116.
Nethcrlatrdkh Pailti.ttg in
it't Fronr Van Eycp to Btucgel: Early
York:
and Kcith Christiansen (New
Mttsutnt, ed. Maryan W' Rinsworth
M.tr..t'lt of Art' 199ti)' p' 150 [15i]--53].'
ft{.,t p"l".t
'sairrt Eloy': Probler.usof Proveuance'
Pcter Schabacker,"Petrus Christus'
35 (1972): fi7-108 [1(]3-181' See also
Sources and Meaning," Art Quarterly
Mastcr Ltf
in
E-ligius,,; PctrusChistts,: Rcnaissancc
Maryatr W.Ainsworth,"St
York:
(New
and Max P'J' Martens
W Ain'*o'tlt
;^ri.g,c;, J. *",yt"
in.'i-p.ft"t
SAME-SEX DESII{E
17. For the srvord as phallus see l)ia'e Wolfthal, Ltrages
rtl Ropt:-l'irc ,,Hrrcic,,
Tiadition and lts Altennti,es (canrbridge, IJK: carrbridte
LJrrivcrsirv l)ress,
1 9 9 9 ) , p p . 6 1 , 8 1 , t l 3 ; f o r t h e s e s t u r e o f g r a s p i , E Jt h c h i l r o f
thc sworclin a
rrrarital context, see Marsaret Scott, Tlc History ttf Drcss
scrits: Ldtc ()ttthic
E u n t p t 1 4 0 0 - 1 5 0 0 ( L o n d o n : M i l l s a n d B o o n , 1 9 B 0 ) ,p . 3 3 , f i g .
13;Rairnond
van M:rrle, kofiosrdphie dc l'ort proJanedu Moyen Age ct i la
Renaissanct,2 vols.
(The Hague: Marri.us NrlhofI, 1r)31), l:457, fig.
452; HalI, Artollini
Betrotltal,pl. 9. For earnest nroney, see Wolfl, ,.The South
Nctherlands.,,
p. 70, and Hall, Arnollini Betrothdl,pp. 15, 61.
l lJ. Van derVelden, "l)efrocking St. Eloy,', p. 262.
1 9 . H a l l , A n t o l f n i B e t r o t h o lp, p . 4 , 1 , 1 0 , t r g . 3 , ( t 2 , f i g . 2 ( t , 4 3 ,
fig. 20. See also
Jan Piet Filedr Kok,"catalogr-re," in Liuelier than Life,ed. Firedt Kok, p. 155,
fig. 58c [t]9-2841;Camille,Mctlieval
Art of Lovc,p. 160,fig. 146.
2 0 Van derVeldcn,"Defrocking St. Eloy,"p. 26g.
2 l Heinrrch Schwartz,"The Mirror in Art,', Art
euartt,rly15 (1952): 1t)3
le7-1181.
12. M J.H Medou, "Het gebruik van de spiegel in cle Middeleeuwen,,,in
Orlg
itl (rog nk't dc Spiegcl,ed. Nico
J. Brcderoo (Anrsterdam: Aranrith. 19gg).
pp. 57-61 [3tt-65]; Schwartz,,.The Mirror in Art,.'p. 103;Julien
Chrpuis,
"Early Netherlandish pai.ting: Srriftirig perspectives,"
in From van EiL:k to
Bruqgel:Early Netherlandishpainting in the Metropolitatt Museutt,ed.
Maryan W.
Ainsworth and Keith Christiansen (New york: Metropoliran
Museurn
o f A r t , 1 9 9 f 1 ) ,p . 1 7 1 3 - 2 1 1 ; S c h a b a c k e r , , . p e t r u sC h r i s t ' s , . S a i n t
Elov.,,,
pp. l0.l-l I8.
13. Van derVelden, "Defrockine St. Eloy,', p. 250.
l-l
t5
Mira Friedrnan, "The
Falcon and the Hunt: Symbolic Love I'raeery in
Medieval and Renaissance Art,,' in pottics qf Loue in the
Middtt,,4.gcs,ed.
Moshe Lazar and Norris J. Lacy (Fairfax: (ieorge Mason lJniversity
I)ress.
l e u q )p. . t 6 2 l t 5 7 - 7 5 1 .
Schabacker,"Petrus Christus"saint Elov,' ', p. 112.
l r r They stand in the street, which was often viewed as
;l clangerousplecc that
rs open to sin, especially sins of a sexual nature. SeeWolfthal,
Into,qcs
of Ra1;c,
pp. 185-89.
1 7 .S c h a b a c k e r , " P e t r u s c h r i s t u s " s a i n t E r o y 1
, "r' 1p -pr.1 2 ;l ) e t c r S c h a b a c k c . r .
PetrusClilstus (Utrecht: Haentjens,Dekker and Gunrbert, 1974),p.
90.
Again varrderVeldendisagrees:
sec.,DefrockingSt. Eloy."p. 2.13.
I'I(]TURIN(;
I)IANE WOLFTHAL
la
Universiry Pres, 1975),p. 19; Manca,"Sacrecl
v s . r ) r o f l r n e , ,1, 5 5 - 5 7 , i u 7 _ { J u ,
n29; Saslow,Pidurts trtd prr.r-srorr.s.
p. 97; Willi:un E. Wallacc, NIklttlau4q,:lo:Tlr'c
Cotnpletc Salphue, Pai:rtitt,J,
Ardtittctrirr, (Horrg Korrq: Hush Laute,
L.vi,,,
1998), p. 137. Horvard Hibbard, ),lirlttlu4qclo,2rcl
cc'r. (Ner,vyo.k, H"rp".
a n d R o w , 1 9 7 4 ) ,c i r e s t h i s c x p l a n a t i o n
r l c , n s r v i t h i u l o t h c r ,p . 3 . iB .
4u. Manca,"Sacred vs. proflne." p. l5(r.
-{,r. Hibb.rrd. .\lirlu,latr.qtlo.
p. tt7.
5(1. Elizabeth B. Keiser, Courth, [)gtiyg
atrd Medit,tdl Horttopholtia(Ncrv Haven:
Y a l e U n i v c r s i t y l ) r e s s ,1 9 9 7 ) , p p . 2 _ 5 , 1 3 3 .
tltc Late X,lidrtltA.qcs,2 vols. (Berkeley: Univcrsity of Chlifornia Press' 1993),
csp.1:209-27.
3 0 . F i l c d t K o k , , , c ) a t a l o g u c , "p . 1 5 5 . f r g . 5 t 3 c ;S t e p h c n K . S c h c r ( e c l . ) ,E r r f t l t c i r i
'Iitrrtrtttt:
t15(1 1550 (Providencc: BrorvD universitv and Rhode Island
S c h o o l o f D e s i g n , 1 9 7 - l ) ,p p . 1 ( ) 7 - 1 { ) 9 .
.{90, n2; Upton, Pt'trtr.sc/tri.rtrr-r,
31. Parrofsky, ErtrlT, NctltcrldrtrlishPairttittg,p.
p.34.
clcntre Natior-ral cle l\ccherches "l)rirtrititi
Flanr:tr.rcls,"l9rr9), p. 11f) ancl
pl. XXIIIb.
33. H. Cliflord Smith, "'The Lcscnd ot S. Eloy ancl S. Godrlebcrtr' by Petrus
C l l r r i s t u s , "B u r l i t r y t o rltI 4 q a : i n c 3 5 ( 1 9 1 ' l ) : 3 3 1 1 3 2 6 - 3 5 1 '
3'+ Sch:rblckcr,"l)etnrs Clrristus"srrint El,ry-" p. 1 l2; Scl-rabackcqPcltrt-sC-lrri-trli-s,
p.91. Sperling,"Pctms Clhristtrsi'p.153 arrdAiDswortl-r."StElegius,"p' 9ti :tgtcc'
35
36
W o l f t l r a l , 1 t r , t g c .t r f R o p t ' ,p p . 1 2 - l ' 1 , 2 6 , 3 - l - 3 5 , 2 1 , ' 2 8 , 3 2 ' 4 ' t , 1 U 2 '
()'11'Ptoplc itt
'l"d FI(r"i()-\c'\tl(ility:
Jolrrr llosrvcll, Christiattitl', Sorid Tblt't'nttrt,
Ct'tttury
Fotrrtt'ottlt
ttt
tht
Era
Clilstiatt
tlf'tfu
Bc.qirtttittg
tltc
Etu1tpc.lrotn
Wi,sttrrt
( O h i c a g o : U n i v e l s i r y o f ( l h i c a e o P r c s s ,1 9 i 3 o ) ,p . 2 5 3 l J u l i u n V i t u l l o , T r c
Cltilalrir llpic itt )Icdiu,al ltal1, (()air-rcsville:Univcrsirv of Florida Press,
2 ( X X ) )p, p . 7 9 - f t o .
37. Friccinan,"The Falcon and tlre Hurlt," p. 169.
3 l J . I l e : r t e S c h n t o l k e - H : r s s c h t r a n u",A c c i p i t c r e t c h i r o t l t c c : t : l ) i c A r t t l s d c ' s
L i e b es a l l e g o ri c ? , " o t ' l u t d t l i sl t - r i n I r i , i, - i i / r c
Andrc.as oapelh nus-cine
Nlonatscltifr(r3 (l9ft2): 387-417 (esp.392-96).
(larrrillc.
Arr trl-Lort',pp. 9'l 99; sec :rlso pp. 78 rnd 10-1.
lt,fudiu,dl
39.
-{0. (laruillc, },lcrli,tul Arr rl'Lolr'. pp. 95-911.
,11. Scc, for exanrple, (lamillc. lt,lcdicuilArt 1rfLolc,6es.6-l and tiO and r-r-12.
-12. (lerrrillc, Ilcditrnl A:'t ol- Lo|(. p. 97, fig. 82. See also, ft>r exanrplc, Mire
Friedrtrln,"siincle, Stindcr trncl dic l):irstelhrnqcn dcr L;rstcr in derlr Ilildcrn
,lJiblc
37 (1913-l):162,
Moralis6c,"' llicttcr Jaliltuch .liir Ktutstgr:sdridtrc
zur
l
l
'
1 ( 1 5 - ( 1 62;5 3 , f i g . 6 ; 2 5 - { , f i g s . 7 1 - 1 2 : 2 6 ( t , f i g . 3 3 [ 1 5 7 - 7
. 1 3 . F r i e d r n a n , " T h c F a l c o r r: r n d t l . r cH r r n t , " p . 1 ( r 0 .
.14. M:rrc Boone,"State l)orver ancl Ilhcit Scxualiry:Tlre l)ersectttionof Sodorlry in
Late Mc'tlic-valBnrgcs,"Jorrrtt,rlttf lltditt'al Historl'22 (199Q:143-'14 [135-53]'
- 1 5 .J a c q u e sC h i t l b l e a u , " D i r - e f i n c l i c i b l e .l { c n r a r q u e s s u r l a c : r t 6 g o r i cc l u ' n e f i n socittts, dtilisatiorl-s-15.2
chrnr' c]u XIIe au XVc siiclc," Artndcs: L'rofloriric-,,
( I e90): 289-32-1.
.l(r.
lnrages of Semel Vicc in l{cnatssancc
Joseph Manca, "sacrecl vs. l)rof:rne:
A r t , " S r r r r / i t r i n k o n o , q r t p l r y1' 3 ( 1 9 9 t ) ) : 1 - 1 5 - 9 { ) ;J o s e p h M a n c a ' T l t e A t t
tl' En:rtlcr/c' Rollcrtl (Canrblidee: Canrblidgc Univcrsiry Press,1992), p 96'
43
'17' charlesdeTolnay,Mri'lrcratrydtt:Srurptor,paitttcr,Anrtittrr(pri'ccton:priuccton
2lJ. Mcver. Schapir-o, ll/ords nttd Pidwcs: on tlrc Liter,tl atul thc slunl,olic itr tltc
Illnstrttiott rl'a Ti'.r:r(Thc Haque: Moutorr, 1973)' p' a{t'
irr Nlorl/rcrtrEn'ctPt'anArt ol'
r'f c)r/rcflrc.r.s
2g. Scc-Ruth Mellinkofl, ()lrtra-st.r:.Siq,.s
3 2 . S c o t t , I - a t c C o t l . t i r l ) r i i r i r i f q , p p1.4 6 , 1 . t i J . B a t t t l l : r l r a l s o t c t t n s t h e t r i r r i s t o c r a t i c :
s e c " E : r r l y F l e n r i s h l ) o r t r a i t s , " p p . 11 - 1 2 . F o r i t r t a q e s o f I s a b e l l a , s ee
dti Xlut .rit\r/r';Crttrtpt'littt dt't I41e)'du (Brnsscls:
Michelinc Sonkes, I)t'.s.sirr-s
SAME_SEX I)ESII].E
51. See Joscph Cady, "Thc.Masculine
Love,of tlic.l)rirrccs oi S.tl.'r,
'Practici'g
the Art of (i:r'y.recrc' at Herl i III'.s
co,rt: Thc Ho.roscxu,rlity
of Herrri III and His i'Iigrrttttsi. pierre
dc LEstoilels NI{rnoircs--rorrrttu,,r,,,i,,
Dr:sirt and Disciplint: Srr arrrl Srslo/ir1,
irt tlrc prottodcru Ll?,.rr,
e,i.-facclueline
Murray ard Ko'rad Eiscrrbicrrlcr (Toro'to:
Universiry of Tbro'to prcss,
1e96),
p. 126Lt23*s4'1.
5 2 . S c e C a d y ," T h e , M a s c u l i n e L o v c ' o f
,pri'ces
thc
o f S o d o r ' , , , , p . 1 2 7. F o r t h i s
phenonienon clsewherc, see Bcrnd-Ulrich
Hereertrollcr, .,Horuoscxncllcs
Alltagsleben inr Mittelalrt,r,', Zcirsrltrili.fiir
S(:rr,.///d,rf.r,r,rg
5 (1992): 117_118.
53 Lilian Arnrsrro's rirst proposcd this
in r/rc Irtirttrrgstut, I)ratuin.qsqf Marat
Z r p , o o( N e w Y o r k : G a r l a ' d p u b l i s h i n g , 1 9 7 e ,
pp
. 2 5 2 , 3 1 3 _ 3 1 1 , ; 1 2 0 .L r r c r
^Ror.,.o,,,Albrc-chr
scl.rolarshavc supported her proposal: se.
ts.try
r)iirer,.s
'I)eath
of orphcus': Its critical Fo'tures ancr
a Ncrv I'tcrpr-etatio, of Its
Meanirrs," Idea: Jaltrbuclt ^t,r HatrthurgL,r
Kurtstlurllc3 (191J1):33
119_4ll;
Huuo C)h:rprnan, pLtduain ttu, 1450s:
Marc Zoppo trttd His Cotttct,pontrics
( L o n d o n : I J r r t i s h M u s c u r n , . 1 9 9 8 ) p, .
3tt.
5-{' JefTreyl{ichards' Se.r,Dissirlt'rt,ctuld
D0ttr,ititttt: ALrrority(}rorlts in tltc Mit,jlc
,4r'e.r(London: l{outledse, 1995), p. 13t3.
5 5 ' M i c h a e l J ' R o c k c , " s o c l o r r r i t e si n i i l t e c n t h - c c n r u r y
l i . r s c a n yT: h e V i c w s o f
Bernardirro of Siena," tt TItt, pursrrit
ttl- Sotlortrl,:X4alt, Horttost:xrnlit1,i11
Rctmissatrct'
Luur Etrighrcntnctft Errropc, ed. Kcnt
Gcracl l.cr oc.rc Hekr.ra
(New vrrk: Harvorrh 'ress, 19ti9), p.
ru [7-311. Also sce his Forrtidd.r
Friertdships:Httnttsexuaritl'attd Morc
Curtrrn itr Rcrrrlr-s.rorrcc
Froretrt, (oxforcr:
Oxlbrd Universiry press, 1996).
56' If the par.reldoes reprcsent St. EIoy,
trren thc co,trast is cve' stro'eer, rvitrr
the qroo'r-to-be at the saint! side a'd
withir t'e sacreclspace ofhis shop.
57. Michcl Foucault, Trt( Histo\t ttf'scxuority,
vor. r, Atr ,ttrotrttctiott, trans.
Robert Hurley (London: penquin, jgTg).
5lJ. Boone, "Srrre l)o,"verand Illicit
Sexualiry,, p. 135. The ftrllowing paraqraph
is a sunrrnary of his article.
5() Boone,"State Porverancllllicit Sexuality,,,pp.
l3g-39.
Sce Frits Pieter van oostrom, c()urt
dttd curturc: I)rrttrt Literattrrt,
135o-1150,trar.rsAr'ord
f. r)o'rera's (Ilerkelcy:UnrversiryoF.rlifbr-'ia
Prcss,1992),pp.222,232;l3oone,"Stare
powerand IllicrtScxuarity,,,p.
142.
(rl
l]oorre,"state Po.,verrnd Illicit Sexuality,,,
p. 117.
1 ) tl
44
DIANE WOLFTHAL
P I C T U R I N G S A M E . S E XD E S I I T E
62. lloone, "State Power and Illicit Sexualiry" p. 152. Saddlers belonged to the
sarne guild as painters, see Schabacker,"Petrus Christus"Saint Eloy" " p. 1t)7.
A letter of 1475 from the Bruges ecorttite (the "schout", or local bailifl) to
the duke and chanceilor mentions the trial, which is said to have taken
place some 25 years earlier. (General Archives, Chambers of accounts,
Acquits de Lille, portefeuille no.369, the old archives ofthe ducal chanrber
of accounts.)This inforrnation was kindly communicated to me via E-nrail
by Marc Boone in 2000.
63. It measures3tJr/z X 331hin. (9t3 X ti5 cm).
(r4. The ternr"denronization" may seeltl too strong to somc, but seeJohannson
p. 112, and Hergenlciller, "Homosexuelles
and Percy, "Honosexualityi'
A l l t a g l e b e n , " p . 11 1 .
65. Aithough they differ iconograpl"rically,a few other fifteenth-century northern European works construct similar negative views of hoI-nosexualiry'A
Bible moralistc condelnns ernbracing nronks; Albrecht Diirer visualizes
vicious attacks on Orpheus and Hercules, who are portrayed as pedophiles
th:rt lrighten innocent infar-rts;and an illumination in a Swiss chronicle
shows sodornites burning at the stake.See Canrille, "For Our Devotion and
Pleasure," pp. 169-91'; James Saslow, "The Middle Ages and Negative
Inragery," Thc Atluocatc (January 21, 19tt6): 56-58; Saslow. Pitturcs atd
'Orpheus':
Two MockPassions,p. 77, 92; Edgar Wind, "'Hercules' and
Heroic l)esigns by Diirer," Jounnl of tlrc Warbutg lnstitute 2 (193U-39):
214-217 [206-181. Colin Eisler, noting Diircr\ close relationship with
Willibald Pirckhein'rer,has suggestedthat the two were lovers; see his revierv
of Jane Campbell Hutcl-risort, Alltrcclt Direr: A Biography,in Rettai'i'sattrc
Quarterl1,45(1992):165 [163-66]. Sixteenth-century Netherlandish art also
rcpresented salnc-sex desire.Bosch is probably referring to scxual acts when
hc shows a man inserting a flower into another nlan's rear end, a print by
Thcodor de Brij depicts dogs attacking homosexuals in the NewWorld, and
those by Frans Hoogcnberg show the arrest and execution oftnonks conp.78, and
denrned for sodorny in Bruges. See Saslow Pirtutesand Passions'
kunst voor
J. Schenk, "Honroseksualiteit in de Nederlandse beelder-rde
1800," S'piegc/Historiael 17 (1982):579-U0 [576-831. See also an illumination ofJupiter and Ganyrnede in Tlrc citl' oJ God' Philadelphia Museum of
Art. +5-Of-,|. tol. JJr
66. See, for example,Joltathan Goldberg,, SodttmetricsRermissanrtTtxrs/Modent
Sexualities(Stanford: Stanford University Pres, 1992).
6 7 . For a parallel exanrple, sec'\Voifthal, Inages o-fRape,p.2-
6rJ.F i l e d t K o k , " C a t a l o g u e , " p . 1 6 7 , c a t . n o . 7 0 .
6 9 . Max Lehrs,"l)ie deutsche und niederlindische
Kupferstich des fiinfzehten
Kunsttuissenschaft
Jahhunderts irr der kleineren Satrrmlungen," Rcpertoriun;fiir
Max
"der
"sein
Begleiter";
and
Falkonier"
no.
64:
15 (1tt92): 122 1110-461,
Lehrs, Gcsrlrirlta und Kritlschcr Katalog tlesDeutsclrcn, Niederliindetisdrcn und
FranzdsisclrcnKltpfcrstichsin XVJahrhunrlert, 10 vols' (Vienr-ra:Gesellschaft
Iiir Vervielfdltigende Kunst, 1932), tt:140, no. 75: "der Begleiter" and "der
45
Genosse"; Max Lehrs,
Mastcr o;f tlrc Amstcnlatr Cal:inct (parts:
-.|-he
InternationalChalcographical
Sociery iSOS_l+;, p. 70; Max Lehrs,,,Der
deutscheund niederllndischeKupGrstich
desfiinfzch'ten Jahrhundc-rts
i'
den kleineren San,nlung,en,,,
Rcpcrtoriutn
J-iir Kuttsttui-;scnscha;ft
15
(1892):
122 [11[)-46];JaneCampbellHuichiso',
il,, Mortrr,rT-the
Flo,sc&oo&
(New
York: Collectort Edition, 1972),p.60;
Filcdt I{ok, .,C)atalogue,,,
p. 167.
Alfred Stangecalledthe print "The
Farco'er wirh the ArisrocraticLord,,
(Die Falkner mit rlen uoftrclu,rcn
Herrcn): see Stange, DasHttusbr,rcluneists
(Baden-Baden:
Heitz, 195'), pp. 15,39. FabrizioAususrorli
rct.r's to Lehr,.s
tide in Caulogo ronpleto delle intisktni
del Matstrc tltl Libnt tli Casq
(Milan: Salanronand Agusrorti,1972),
p. xrx (,.Der Falkcnier urcl seirr
Begleiter").
70. For rhis print, see
Jay A. Levenson,Kor.rradOberhuber,and
JacquclincL.
Sheehan,
EarryItaliartEtr.graui
ngs.frotn
t rtcNation
ar carary ofArt(washineton:
National Gallery,1973),p.94,cat.no.
17. For anotherprint that showsthc
gerrtle'ra. and his servantout falconing,
seeArthur M. Hi,.ra,fnrty tt,rii,,
Enorauing
(Ne,"vyork:
Knoedlcr,193i1),Il,A.lll.22,;t.l
.Hererhc scntlenran
rides on horscbackrvh'e his servant
;rks, asaina crearcrasscristinctio'.
71. For the wrearh,seeFriedma',.,The
Falcon^,i th. Hu't,,,1_rp.
162_63,167:
Fiiedt Kok,.,Catalogue,"
p. 277.
72. SeeFiledtKok,.,Catalogue,,,p.
156,0g.5gf and p. 175,fig.75c;
Wolfthel,
Inagcso;fRdpc,p. 1U5,fig. 112.
7.1. Lehrs.Ccsrltkltrt
rrtrdKrlrisrhcr
Karalo.g.
tl: l-{9.
7.{. Jonatharr
J.G.Alexander,Tl_rc
Maste
r if ,*,
,:1.
Bur.quntly:
A Book,tl.Hours;for
En,qelhcrt
d Nassau(New york: (ieorges Br"rill.., 1970),
ca,t.
nos. 41_5g,
fol' 55v'Alexandernoresthat Enrperor
FrederickII describedthL-sanrcsort
of lure.SeealsoHeinz peters,.,Faike,
FalkenjagJ,Falkner,und Falkc-nbuch,,,
nt Reallexikon
zur Deutschen
Kutrqqeschichte,.a]ouo
Schnrittet al.(Mu'icrr:
Alfred Druckmnller. 1937_), 6: 1279,
1281_82,13 | 4 11251_1 3661.
75. FiledtKok,.,Catalogu
e,"p. 167.
7(r. Guy de Tervare't, Attribrt,
et synfuolesdans l,art pro.fane,1450_1d00:
d,ut langageptrdu, 3 vols. (Geneva:
Droz, 1958_64),2:30();
!::::::,r",
F!ilH. Hollstein, Cernnn Engrauings,
f;hitrys, a,tnd
Woodtuts
ra. 1400_1700
(Arnsrerdam:
Menno Hertzberger,1954_),i,io, g.l0q.
77. David Landau a'd peter parshall,
Tl,, R uorrror* print: 1470_1550
(New Haven:yaleUniversirypress,
1994),pp. 5 and 37g,n109.
78. JaneCampbellHutchison,,.Th.
Hour"book,i in Liuelierthanl1fr,ed.Janpiet
Filedt Kok, pp. 218_20,245
[218_45].
79. See,for exanrple,van Marle, Iluylryltic
del,artpro;fane,
1:26_3()andSr'ith,
"The Legendof S.Eloy
and S.Glddeb"r,.,,,p.i35.
fit). N46ysy,
"Chivalry and the Housebookl4arier,,,p-25.
li1. Richards,Sex,Dissidence
attdDatruntion,p.137.'
82 Filedt Kok, "Catalogr.re,',
p. 169.
fJ3. FiledtKok,,.Catalogu
e,,'p.252.
s-1. Filedt Kok,..Catalogue,"p.
1(>7.
4()
I)IANE WOLFTHAL
r35 Filcclt Kok, "Clat:rlogue,"p' 15'i'
Hi,r,.ie.r:lrality in Art
i,l f/rc Roidi-s,\.l,rcc:
E() J;rrrresSaslor,H()drt1,tttt,1t,
rlti'/ sdricl)/
U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s '1 9 t 3 6 ) '
. , : - attiftrde
^!.:...
iN.." H.u"t',Y.le
l)iirer! Botlr/rorr'sc'
llortherr; work to shorv this
orrly
the
not
is
Tl-ris
87
sattre-sexdesire;
refi'ains hortr condeuluinq
l woodcrtt clateclca' f+9f'' "1'o
p. 94.
picturcsntttl p6-s.riorr-c,
scc Seslorv,
"For Otlr
in n(r5 ancl Carnille'
t."t'-ttttt'tt
IJIJ. Sce Ganyt.ne'd"
"'""tin"ttt
1(r9-t)1 '
l)evtttiou :rtrclPlcasure"'pp
CHAPTER 2
VISIBLE AND INVISIBLE BODIES ANI)
SUBJECTS IN PETER DAMIAN
LVilliamBurgutinkle
This dtaptcr dr!n( tlnt ltt,tcr Duuidn's Libcr gortrorrhirnus (.1049) nm),
bc ilt
dltd(k ()il -strdolllrr'.srt,ithirt tfu clt,vtutlrrcnnul, dcrpy, btt his partoptital.ga--c,
/rr
Nn(utt u'ilh disdplitrc and siltjrriyi:,ttio//, Id,r{rr.-{-i,ttjtutututityl ttd iduttity-lus
Llesirt,olso cst,rltlishhin u ,rl cdr\' quu'r tlk,orist.
l)anrian is not the first fisure rhar conres ro nrind when compiling
petl
L ; lisr of 'rc-dicval queer rheorists.Thougl.r he is often citecl as a key
tiq.re in the for'-rulatio. of the si' of sodonry and as an innovator
i.
,lrsciplinarydiscourse,he is not usually considered an advocate
for whar
I r'ould call, followine Foucault, a queer aestheticsof the self.ryet when
,ir'.rtedasairrstLeo Bersani'.sHonrtts,specifically asainst Bersani's reading
of
\.tir6 Gide, Peter emergesas an inrportant theorist of urale.or-rr,'.r,ri,i.,
\\ lr()sevlcws re'sor:lte u.rcan'ily with Foucruldian concerns about
the
l')()\verand fantasy of control through sight a'd the ciiscipli'ary efTectsof
l', irrr-Iseen.2The Peter Dar'ian i'cluestion is, of course,thc author
of the
L'r .or' irrfa'rous Libcr gttnntrrliarrr.r-s
[Booa ttf-Gotttorrnhl,probably the first
hornophobia, b't also of the
"rrrprehensive guiclebook to christil'
lt, laudc.flagrllorutnlln Praisc qf- Flauellationl,a work of incredible
dari'g
hc rvrote'in the hst years of his life. Iloth r,vorkswere written irr
"lrich
' ,it'fc'sive 'rode, ls jr.rstification lbr his orvn versio's of the Law
a'd as