History Needs You
  • Home
  • Services
    • Broadcasting >
      • Consultancy for film and tv
      • On Air
      • On Screen
      • Voice Overs and Audio
    • Funded History Projects
    • Events and Live Performance
    • Victorian Photo Studio >
      • Toynbee Hall
    • Education >
      • World War 1 >
        • WW1 at Home
        • The World at War
      • Education resources
    • Training
  • Contact

The language of flowers speaks clearly, not in riddles

19/5/2015

2 Comments

 
The big historical story of the day is that Mark Griffiths, a botanist and columnist for Country Life, has claimed to have discovered the only image of William Shakespeare made during his lifetime. 

http://www.countrylife.co.uk/features/world-exclusive-the-true-face-of-shakespeare-revealed-for-the-first-time-video-72243

Griffiths made this sensational claim about a figure on the frontispiece of Gerard's Herbal. He has cracked what he claims to be a secret Tudor code -  but there is no code or secret to decipher.

The figure and the emblems associated in the engraving are linked with one man, Sir Francis Drake. It was Drake who brought corn (which the figure in the illustration is holding), tobacco and potatoes to England in 1586 when returning from the Roanoke colony. It was Drake who was associated with the Snake's Head Fritillary, which the figure is also holding, having being sent the flowers by Charles de L'Ecluse. John Gerard is depicted on the frontispiece holding a potato plant. This potato was given to him by none other than Francis Drake. 
Gerard's great innovation was to include descriptions of the exciting new plants from the Americas, whilst many of the older plants were based on an earlier work by Rembert Dodoens. We know that Gerard's description of the potato was based on what Drake told him. This was the first description of the potato in English literature. 


Furthermore, the image in the engraving looks nothing like any existing images of Shakespeare but does look just like Francis Drake. This portrait of Drake, courtesy Philip Mould, is strikingly similar to the engraving.

http://www.historicalportraits.com/Gallery.asp?Page=Item&ItemID=1312&Desc=Sir-Francis-Drake-%7C--English-Sixteenth-Century-School

Picture
References

Corn: Sir Francis Drake's West Indian Voyages, 1585-1586, Ashgate Publishing, 1991

Snake's Head Fritillary: Bulbs, A complete handbook, 1973

2 Comments
KJM
20/5/2015 11:47:16 am

Is it possible that the guy supposed to be Shakespeare or Drake is actually meant to be Henry Lyte, who I think first described the snake's head fritillary in English when he translated Rembert Dodoens' 'Cruydeboeck' as 'A Niewe Herbal' (1578)? (The description is in book II, p.214.)

I only had a glance online, so this is impressionistic, but two of the other figures resemble contemporary images of Dodoens and Carolus Clusius (bottom left and top right, respectively) and could maybe be based on such, and it would make sense to have a group of botanists on the cover.

I have no idea about the top right figure though - is there any evidence that it's Lord Burleigh, as has been claimed? It sounds a little unlikely to me. Maybe another sixteenth century botanist? It might be worthwhile, if anyone has interest and leisure, to survey some portraits of notable botanists of the period to see if any look like they might be a credible source for these images.

Reply
KJM
20/5/2015 06:14:21 pm

Sorry, first sentence of third paragraph should read 'top left figure'.

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    January 2017
    September 2016
    April 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    May 2015
    January 2015
    June 2014
    May 2014
    March 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012

    Categories

    All
    All Saints Church
    Architecture
    Cambridge
    CCT
    Christmas
    Eghmedia
    Film
    G F Bodley
    Halloween
    Historical Recipes
    History
    Historyneedsyou
    Literacy
    Pinterest
    Richard Iii
    Twitter
    William Morris

    RSS Feed

Copyright for all images and text on this website is owned by Matthew Ward and Gill Fraser Lee, @HistoryNeedsYou unless stated otherwise.  Images and content may not be used elsewhere without permission.
  • Home
  • Services
    • Broadcasting >
      • Consultancy for film and tv
      • On Air
      • On Screen
      • Voice Overs and Audio
    • Funded History Projects
    • Events and Live Performance
    • Victorian Photo Studio >
      • Toynbee Hall
    • Education >
      • World War 1 >
        • WW1 at Home
        • The World at War
      • Education resources
    • Training
  • Contact