#Charles Quint

[grandboute]

Palais Granvelle - Besançon

[writing-system]

Charles Quint, 1547

Source

[philoursmars]

Bon, n'étant pas très mobile, difficile de créer des posts avec de nouvelles photos. Je reviens donc à mon projet de présenter l'intégralité de mes photos, projet interrompu à l'année 2017. Je vais donc essayer de clore cette année 2017. Et elle sera close par Marseille aux vacances de Noël.

Ici le MuCEM:

Jan-Cornelisz Vermeyen : "La Prise de Tunis par Charles Quint" - Bruxelles, 1550 (Visiblement, le monsieur au gros derrière rose perdu la tête. Fort heureusement ,quelqu'un l'a trouvée et cherche à qui la rendre... Enfin, c'est MON analyse)

F-A. Cutileiro : Les 2 premiers vice-rois des Indes portugaises - Portugal, 1966

Jan-Baptist Huysmans : "Ogier de Busbecq achetant l'étendard d'Espagne à des pirates turcs"- Bousbecque, 1904

Lazzaro Tavarone : "Le doge Giacomo-Durazzo Grimaldi reçoit Don Juan d'Autriche à Gênes" - Gênes, 1585

Rolle (liste) des Turcs enrôlés sur les galères - Marseille, XVIe s.

[qzse-rtv]

Aight guys my hot takes

English is easy but is hell to speak it has horrible intonations and flexes to put on words and sillables in sentences

Spanish sounds hot in songs and shows but when its spoken by normal people it sounds horrendous

German sounds terrible in media bc people make it worse than it actually is, if you take time with it's its pretty nice and irl it kinda has the same tone than french, by that i mean that it's honestly pretty flat and i like this

French of course is a perfect language

[little-candy-store-of-horrors]

Imagine if they put this lad into a pop musical 😭

[dixvinsblog]

Les grands peintres : L’École espagnole du XVIe siècle : L'âge d'or espagnol.

Contexte historique Charles Quint Le siècle d’or correspond à la période de rayonnement culturel de la monarchie catholique espagnole en Europe du XVI au XVII siècle (1492-1681).Elle débute avec l’Empereur Charles Quint (qui est le plus grand monarque Européen de cette période et s’achève avec Philippe IV (1621-1665) soit environ 110 ans.Lorsque Charles Quint abdique en 1555, épuisé et malade,…

[spilladabalia]

The Stools - R U Saved?

[thirddeadlysin]

im so sorry but literally every picture makes me go "Charles Nelson Reilly on Match Game!"

[steph-photographie]

Photo originale par Steph-Photo

Une image que j'aime beaucoup et qui trône encore dans mon bureau ... L'escalier du Palais de Charles-Quint à l'Alhambra de Grenade (Espagne)

[mapsontheweb]

The Habsburg Empire, 16th-17th centuries

« Atlas historique », Nathan, 1982

by cartesdhistoire

In 1519, Charles Quint found himself virtually the master of Europe. However, instead of viewing his role as a spiritual mission, he felt a deep sense of duty to his lineage. This obligation drove him to perpetuate, and if possible, enhance, what he had inherited for his successors. This principle, deeply ingrained in the tradition of the House of Burgundy, became a cornerstone of Habsburg governance, with each possession managed as if he were the sole monarch of each one.

In 1556, Philippe II inherited the ancient estates of Burgundy, the Spanish Monarchy (including its Italian dependencies), and the Duchy of Milan. Throughout his foreign policy, the sense of dynasty always took precedence: the Dutch were treated more as rebels than heretics; the incorporation of Portugal in 1580 was driven by the defense of succession rights rather than expansionism. Similarly, interventions in the French civil war and the Armada against England in 1588 aimed more at defending the integrity of heritage than pursuing a crusade.

Under Philippe III (1598-1621), signs of decline began to emerge within the Hispanic monarchy. The reign of Philippe IV (1621-1665) was marked by continual unrest, with no respite for a year of peace. Involvement in the Thirty Years War strained the Castilian Treasury, leading to economic crises in the 1630s and subsequent anti-tax revolts. The dissatisfaction of peripheral elites culminated in secessionist revolts in Catalonia and Portugal in 1640, while nobles conspired against the Crown. In Italy, revolts in Naples and Sicily in 1647 further exacerbated the crisis. Amid internal opposition, economic depression, and military setbacks, the Hispanic Monarchy struggled for survival, with only the Portuguese secession achieving success.

[pupsmailbox]

do you have any names similar to these? it doesnt have to be all of them, but mainly Edgar, Pierce, Rigorre and Grimm. ive been looking around for some and this'll be great help :)!

Edgar, Grimm, Rigorre, Cain(e), Ozzy/Ozul, Onyx, Dice, Throne, Viper, Vesper, Heron, Nyx, Spector, Harker, Talyn, Dorian, Pierce

some might be closed so make sure to do your own research !! I tried to do most of them but I couldnt find them all / some were filled with closed names!

EDGAR︰ adler. albert. alexander. alfred. alice. archibald. arthur. atlas. august. barnabas. beatrice. benjamin. charles. charlotte. clarence. dior. eddie. eder. edmund. eduard. edward. edwin. edyn. eleanor. elijah. elmer. ember. emerson. emmett. ernest. esther. eugene. evelyn. everett. ezra. felix. ferdinand. finn. franklin. gilbert. harold. harper. hector. henry. humphrey. iris. irving. isaac. jack. jagger. james. jasper. leo. leonard. leopold. noah. oliver. oscar. penelope. rowan. rupert. sebastian. silas. theo. theodore. tiger. vincent. violet. walter. william.

GRIM(M)︰ august. axel. brennon. charlie. dax. dean. declan. delilah. demetri. enver. evangeline. ezra. felicity. finn. foster. fox. gaerwn. garan. garima. garin. garran. garren. garron. geranium. gereon. gerianne. germain. germaine. german. geronimo. gerwin. gianni. giovanni. gordon. goren. graeme. graham. grainne. gram. grannia. granny. green. greyden. grian. griffin. grina. gurnam. gwern. iris. joaquin. jude. kevin. kyra. leah. loki. millie. parker. rain. rogue. sage. silas. spencer. tristan. viktor.

CAINE(E)︰ abel. aidan. aiden. aleks. amelia. amory. andreas. aries. asher. aurora. ava. axel. azriel. bane. bartholomew. bonanza. cade. caden. cael. caiden. cain. caine. cale. caleb. cam. camden. cameo. cammie. camo. cana. canaan. canan. cane. cannan. cano. canyon. carter. case. casey. cash. cassim. cato. cawny. cayden. cayman. ceanna. ceona. chahna. chaim. chan. chana. chance. chaniya. charlotte. chase. chayan. chazmyne. chen. chesmu. chesna. cheyenne. cheyne. chiazam. chima. chimene. chin. china. chione. chosen. chukwuma. chumani. chyna. chynna. cian. cinna. cinnamon. cluny. cohen. cole. conn. connie. conway. cosmo. coyne. craig. cuan. cuno. cwen. côme. d'arcy. dane. dash. declan. dewitt. duran. edelynn. elijah. enoch. evelyn. gabriel. gage. gardeenia. genevieve. grayson. gwendelyn. gyles. hadrian. hesh. iain. icarus. jane. jermyn. kace. kade. kaelynn. kaidan. kaiden. kailyn. kain. kaine. kale. kane. kate. kaydin. kaydon. kayne. kedar. ken. knox. koen. lane. layne. liam. liliela. loch. lucifer. lucy. mattheo. nicollette. raiden. rayne. roddy. romilda. ryder. sawyl. scarlett. shane. thane. tyre. violet. wayne. zain. zaine. zane. zayne.

OZZY / ONYX︰ adi. archie. aria. arlo. asher. aspen. atlas. aurora. autumn. avi. axel. beck. bijoux. blade. bodie. bowie. caelum. cora. cy. daisy. davi. declan. draco. dune. echo. elton. elvis. ember. ezra. ezri. falcon. finn. fleet. garnet. gavin. genevieve. harper. hazel. imre. indigo. ivy. jade. jagger. jasper. jem. jet. jinx. johnny. joplin. josiah. joziah. kai. kaiya. kano. karter. kavi. khari. knox. lennox. leo. luca. luna. lynx. mac. maddox. mazi. mercury. millie. milo. morrissey. neptune. night. nirvana. nixie. nova. nyx. oak. oakes. ocean. ocheckka. ochoa. ohanzee. ojai. ojas. oke. oki. oliver. omega. onika. onix. onnika. onnix. onyekachukwu. onyx. ooko. oonagh. opal. opaline. orion. oscar. oscosh. oshae. osias. osiris. ossie. otto. owen. oyku. oz. ozzie. penelope. penny. peridot. phoenix. quinn. quint. rami. raven. ravi. remi. reno. river. rocky. roux. rowan. sage. salem. santana. sebastian. silas. sophie. storm. sunny. theo. topaz. uziel. violet. willow. wren. wyatt. zaki. zephyr. zeppelin. ziggy.

VESPER / VIPER︰ ace. aeron. akiva. antares. apollo. arcana. archer. asher. atlas. atticus. aurora. calista. callaway. cardin. cash. cason. chai. chancellor. charlotte. cora. cordovan. coriander. corisande. cruz. denarius. draven. elaina. elixir. elowen. elyse. ember. enfys. evangeline. felix. ferelith. finn. genesis. glade. hadley. halcyon. harbor. hazel. ivy. jaguar. journey. kaemon. kailo. kanon. katia. koa. kobe. kodiak. lainey. lazare. legacy. luna. lyra. magic. majesty. mystique. nora. obsidian. ocasio. oceane. oliver. opaline. ophelia. pax. peregrine. phaedra. phoenix. piper. quinn. rasmus. regulus. reverie. rohmer. rowyn. royce. rule. sage. salome. scarlett. sebastian. shyla. silas. sorcha. summer. tatiana. thorin. titan. vale. vallis. vance. varro. vega. velvette. vera. verity. vesper. vespera. violet. viper. von. vyra. wren. xavier. yvaine. zander. zephyr.

DORIAN︰ adrian. adrien. ambrose. amelia. andrea. appoline. arian. armani. asher. audrey. aurora. basil. benno. bloom. cassius. charlotte. cornelius. damian. damien. dante. darcy. darena. darian. dariana. darien. darin. darina. darion. darius. darren. darrin. darrion. darwin. daryan. datherine. davian. davion. dawson. dayaram. declan. derion. deron. derron. derwyn. dharma. dhiren. dominic. doreen. dorin. dorona. dorsey. dreama. dren. drian. duran. durham. durin. emrys. ethan. evander. evelyn. evleen. ezra. florian. gabriel. gilda. gordon. hadrian. heidy. jackie. jordan. julian. korbin. leander. liam. lorcan. lowri. lucian. lysander. marian. marion. mars. morgan. muse. naoma. oberon. oliver. orion. pallas. penelope. peregrine. quianna. rian. sebastian. shawnee. soren. theodore. tori. umber. violet. warren.

PIERCE︰ asher. audrey. ava. beckett. bennett. brooks. callan. charlotte. claire. cole. colton. dean. emerson. emmett. eros. everett. finn. fisher. fitz. flint. foster. gavin. grant. grayson. harper. harrison. hawk. hazel. heath. henry. hiro. hudson. ivy. jack. james. kane. kyra. landon. leo. liam. mason. miles. miller. mira. noah. oliver. olivia. owen. pace. paprika. paras. paresh. paricia. paris. parish. park. parker. parks. pauric. pearce. pearson. peers. percy. perez. perga. perris. perry. perseus. persia. persis. piers. pierson. piroj. porsche. powers. prakash. prayaksh. precia. preciosa. precious. price. prince. prisca. prissy. pryce. pyrrhus. quinn. reese. reeve. reid. rhett. ridge. rowan. sawyer. scarlett. sirius. slater. spencer. theo. theodore. vince. violet. wren. wyatt.

[fatsamsgrandslamspeakeasy]

I know that I am a few hours early, but I really wanted to get this out there since I may not have the chance to do so tomorrow. In remembrance of the late, great Robert Archibald Shaw, whose magnetic personality, mesmerizing screen presence, and dynamic energy entertained us for so many years on the silver screen. One can only imagine what would have been, and how he would have continued to thrill us, and what movies would have been better for his participation, if he wasn't taken from us way too soon. You are still sorely missed, 46 years after your passing, Mr. Shaw!

Top to bottom: A young Robert Shaw; candid Shaw circa 1977; as Quint from JAWS (1975); as Mr. Blue aka Bernard Ryder in The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3 (1973); as General George Armstrong Custer in Custer of the West (1967); as Romer Treece in The Deep (1977); as Doyle Lonegan in The Sting (1973); as Major David Kabakov in Black Sunday (1977), as Captain "Red" Ned Lynch in Swashbuckler (1976); as Major Keith Mallory in Force 10 From Navarrone (1978)

Below: The scene and monologue from JAWS that placed Robert Shaw on the Silver Screen map, in a huge way, back in 1975!!!!! Cemented his super-stardom without question....

Robert Shaw's memorial stone in Tourmakeady, County Mayo, Ireland, where he resided with his wife and 10 children.

Here's something that very few are aware of.....  Carol for Another Christmas is a 1964 ABC American TV movie, written by Rod Serling as a modernization of Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol. Robert Shaw portrays a very vociferous Ghost of Christmas Yet-To-Come, and gives an amazing monologue with Sterling Hayden that, is riveting, and almost on par as his famous USS Indianapolis monologue from JAWS. If you have not yet seen this minor classic, TCM usually has it available for streaming year round.

[francepittoresque]

24 juillet 1534 : Jacques Cartier prend possession du Canada au nom du roi de France ➽ http://bit.ly/Cartier-Canada Le pilote malouin brûlait de « voyager, découvrir et conquérir à Neuve-France, ainsi que trouver, par le Nord, le passage au Cathay », le roi de France voyant dans ce périple une façon d’entraver l’avancée de Charles Quint et, partant, de l’affaiblir financièrement

[bjfinn]

MOVIE NIGHT

another Charles Deetz story, for @koberet

Charles was heading to the TV room when Beej came over to him and threw an arm around his shoulders. "Hey, Chuck!" he said. "What'cha up to?"

"I thought I'd watch a movie this evening," Charles replied. He hesitated, and then asked, "Would you care to join me?"

"Yeah, sure!" the demon agreed. He followed Charles into the TV room and sat in one of the armchairs. "What are we gonna watch?"

"Let's see ..." Charles murmured, looking at the DVDs neatly arranged on the shelves of the wooden home entertainment cabinet. "How about ... Jaws? 1975, directed by Stephen Spielberg, starring Robert Shaw, Roy Scheider and Richard Dreyfuss. Based on the novel by Peter Benchley." He knew that a high-seas thriller featuring a mindless killing machine would appeal to Beej -- he was a demon, after all. And it was fast-paced enough that he wouldn't get bored.

"What's it about?"

"Three men hunt down a man-eater," Charles told him.

"A man-eater, huh?" Beej said. "Okay, sounds good."

In truth, the demon had no idea if it would be a good movie or not -- but he and Lydia's father had begun to develop a real relationship since Charles had introduced Beej to bird-watching, and Beej enjoyed spending time with him.

Charles turned on the TV, popped the DVD into the player and settled himself in the other armchair.

The opening credits were followed by a sunset beach party scene that led quickly to Chrissie Watkins' stripping for an evening swim -- something that got Beej's attention immediately. He looked at Charles in surprise.

"I didn't think you were into this kinda thing, Chuck --" he said, wiggling his eyebrows.

Then the actress suddenly screamed in terror, attacked by something under the water, and the demon nearly jumped out of his skin. He leaned forward in his seat, his eyes intently focussed on the screen, trying to get a glimpse of the monster, his breath quickening as he watched her flailing about in the ocean, until ... she was gone. Gone -- just like that.

"What -- what killed her?" he asked.

Charles looked over at him and smiled. "You'll see," he replied.

Beej conjured up a family-sized bucket of hot buttered popcorn and set it on the small table between their chairs. He grabbed a huge handful and shoved it into his mouth. "Help yourself, Chuck," he said, his cheeks stuffed like a hamster's. "Don't be shy -- there's plenty more where that came from!"

"Thanks," Charles replied, taking a smaller handful for himself.

*****

"I think I like Matt Hooper the best," Beej said after a while. "He's funny -- and he's kinda hot. I hope he doesn't get eaten. The other two, well ... they're kinda both assholes -- especially that Quint guy."

"Matt's played by Richard Dreyfuss," Charles told him. "This was his break-out role."

"What'd he break out of?"

"Obscurity."

Beej wasn't sure what that meant, but it didn't sound so good.

The demon had to admit that he was enjoying the movie immensely -- it was always fun seeing breathers get torn to pieces by a monster, after all. But there was one problem with this movie, and it was frustrating the hell out of him.

"When do we get to see the shark?" Beej asked.

"Soon, I promise," Charles replied.

"I hope so -- we've been watching for -- what? Five hours now?"

"An hour and ten minutes," Charles told him, chuckling.

"Okay, but still -- that's a long time to wait for the star of the show!"

*****

"There it is! " Beej exclaimed, pointing excitedly at the TV screen. "There's the shark! " His eyes grew wide, captivated by the appearance of the beast. "I think Brody's right -- they're gonna need a bigger boat!"

Charles laughed.

*****

"Why are they putting Hooper in that cage?" Beej asked, a note of concern in his voice. "He's gonna get eaten - that shark'll tear the cage to pieces!"

He watched, wide-eyed, as the cage was lowered into the water and the shark began its approach. "Get the fuck outta there!" he exhorted. "Whaddya think you're doing, you moron? Hurry! Get --"

The shark hit the cage head-on, and Beej let out a whimper. Charles was intrigued -- the demon was showing empathy for a stranger? And a fictional character to boot?

Beej's breathing was coming in short, sharp bursts as he watched his favourite character's life flash before his eyes. For the first time in his unlife, Beej felt the terror experienced by a breather facing a monster. When Hooper drew his knife and stabbed at the shark, Beej's lip curled in satisfaction - at least the shark wasn't going to get away completely uninjured.

Finally, when Hooper managed to get out of the now-battered cage and swim to a safe hiding place, Beej let out a sigh of relief.

"That was close," he said. "I'm glad he got away."

*****

"So?" Charles asked when the movie ended. "What did you think?"

"Why did they hafta blow it up?" Beej said, his eyes welling up. "Fuckin' bastards!"

Charles smiled ruefully. "It was killing people."

"It was just tryna survive, for crissakes!" A tear rolled down his cheek. "Poor guy -- all he wanted was a snack. At least it ate that guy Quint." He looked at Charles. "Sometimes you breathers suck, you know that?"

Charles nodded. "Sadly, you're right about that," he said. "Sometimes we suck."

"Good movie, though," Beej said. He regarded Charles thoughtfully. "That was me, wasn't it?"

"What do you mean, BJ?"

"I'm the shark. I'm the monster." There was no trace of sorrow in his voice -- in fact, he seemed rather pleased with the idea.

Charles didn't know what to say to that.

"Hey -- it's okay, Chuck," Beej said with a grin. "I'm a demon, remember? I'm supposed to be a monster."

"Yes, well ... you're different," Charles told him. "You're a sentient being -- you have the capacity to learn, to become more than just a killing machine. The shark was driven solely by instinct."

"You gettin' sweet on me, Chuck?" Beej teased.

"I'm ... I'm saying that you can be more than just a monster -- you are more than just a monster. You're part of the family now."

"Thanks," Beej said. "I really appreciate you guys bein' so good to me. Nobody was ever nice to me before. Nobody ever cared about me like you guys do."

Charles nodded. "I can't imagine how hard it was."

"Yeah, you're lucky."

"Did you want to tell me about it?" Charles said. "What it was like?"

Beej looked at him. "You really wanna hear about it?"

"Only if you want to -- and only as much as you're comfortable sharing with me."

And so Beej began telling Charles about growing up in the Netherworld -- resented by his mother, despised and shunned by everyone. He told Charles about Sandy, his pet sandworm, and how she was killed by a bully. He told him about growing up not trusting anyone or anything except himself, how he learned to defend himself -- with both magic and humour.

He told Charles everything. Well, almost everything.

"My God," Charles exclaimed when the demon had finished. "I had no idea. I'm sorry you had to go through all that, BJ."

Beej shrugged. "Yeah, well ... that's all over now," he said. "Now I have you guys."

Charles looked at his watch. "It's getting late," he noted. "I should get to bed." He got to his feet. "I'm glad you enjoyed the movie, BJ. And ... thank you for telling me about your life. If you ever feel the need to talk some more, my door is always open."

"Okay, thanks!" Beej said, grinning and giving Charles a thumb's-up as the breather exited the TV room. "G'night ... Dad."

Charles looked back at the demon, surprised. "Uh ... good night, son." He smiled to himself. "Dad," he said softly as he headed for the bedroom. "I like that." By the time he got into bed, he was grinning from ear to ear.

[raisongardee]

"Souvent, en regardant une charmante copie d’un portrait d’Angelo Bronzino, que possédait sa mère et qui représentait un seigneur de vingt ans, l’épée au côté et la main sur un livre, il avait pensé à ce temps où un soldat pouvait sans ridicule être passionnément attaché à l’étude. "Que de fois l’ai-je regardé et entretenu, ce témoin charmant, grave et pensif, d’un âge disparu. Que de fois j’ai revécu avec lui cette vie vraie, où l’on se poignardait bien au coin des rues, où la lutte était à chaque pas, mais où tous les ressorts étaient tendus, où toutes les facultés vibraient. Il a son épée. C’était un "noble cavalier, hardi et courtois" ; c’était un soldat, comme l’était tout seigneur ; il vient sans doute de combattre à la tête de ses gens contre les troupes de l’Empereur Charles-Quint qui menace la ville. Mais il est appuyé aussi sur un livre. C’est qu’après les bons coups d’estoc il aime lire Dante ; il a peut-être lui-même composé quelques sonnets ; à coup sûr il a devisé des affaires de la République et causé de l’art avec son peintre et ses compagnons. C’était alors tout simple, l’homme et le citoyen demeuraient toujours sous l’habit qui les couvrait."."

André Maurois, Lyautey, Paris, Librairie Plon, 1931.

[marciamattos]

Les Époux Arnolfini de Jan van Eyck.

LIVRE/Les époux Arnolfini de Jan van Eyck disséqués par Jean-Philippe Postel

Crédits: National Gallery, Londres

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C'est l'un de plus célèbres tableaux du monde. Conservé depuis 1843 à la National Gallery de Londres, ce panneau de moins d'un mètre de haut se voit intitulé, pour des raisons de commodité, «Les époux Arnolfini» (1). Son auteur ne fait aucun doute. Il s'agit de Jan van Eyck, qui l'a pourvu d'une très visible signature. L’œuvre porte une date, 1434. Le caractère alambiqué de l'inscription en caractères gothiques, «Jan van Eyck fut ici en 1434», ne permet cependant pas de savoir si c'est l'année de sa création ou si l'événement rapporté s'est déroulé cette année-là. De toute manière, ce chef-d’œuvre admirablement conservé ne saurait être postérieur de beaucoup. Van Eyck, dont on ignore la date de naissance, est mort en 1441.

La peinture a déjà fait couler beaucoup d'encre. Elle pose des problèmes complexes d'interprétation. Ancien médecin, Jean-Philippe Postel n'est pas historien de l'art. Il utilise ici les travaux des chercheurs professionnels, en y ajoutant une «observation clinique attentive». Il s'agit en effet de tout voir, même ce qui se révèle microscopique. Van Eyck reste le maître absolu du détail, même s'il y en a tout de même moins ici que dans la «Vierge du chancelier Rolin», à l'iconographie plus simple, qui se trouve depuis la Révolution au Louvre. Là, certains personnages d'un paysage urbain presque infini mesurent moins de trois millimètres.

Une histoire connue depuis 1516

Le tableau connu sous le nom des «Arnolfini» n'a pas toujours porté ce titre. On ne sait rien de son exécution. Il apparaît en 1516, ce qui semble déjà remarquablement précoce, chez Don Diego de Guevara, qui l'offre à Marguerite d'Autriche, régente des Pays-Bas. Il passe ensuite à Marie de Hongrie, la sœur de Charles-Quint, qui s'occupe des mêmes provinces. Elle le ramène en Espagne où il pend encore au début du XIXe siècle au Palacio Nuevo, qu'occupe Joseph Bonaparte, le frère aîné de Napoléon, promu roi à la force des baïonnettes. Après, on ne sait pas. Joseph quitte le pays avec nombre de tableaux, dont beaucoup se trouvent aujourd'hui à Aspley House, la maison des ducs de Wellington en plein Londres. Le colonel William Hay aurait retrouvé celui-ci en 1815 dans une maison belge...

L’œuvre a toujours passé pour mystérieuse, à la manière d'un rébus. Marie de Hongrie l'avait fait fermer par des volets cadenassés, signe de secret à cacher. Dès 1516, le personnage masculin est nommé Hernoul-le-Fin. Par assonance, le historiens en ont fait Arnolfini. Il s'agirait d'un membre (mais lequel, au fait, vraiment Giovanni?) d'une des ces nombreuses familles italiennes faisant du commerce à Bruges, dans le port de laquelle entre vers 1430 jusqu'à 100 bateaux par jour. Les Florentins ou les Lucquois passent quantité de commandes à Van der Weyden, Hugo van der Goes ou Memling.

Le petit chien sans reflet

Le tableau montre un couple bourgeois et prospère. L'homme et la femme ne se regardent pas. Lui tient une main en l'air, dans l'attitude du serment. Elle lui tient la main. Il y a devant eux un ravissant petit chien dont le reflet ne se retrouve pas sur le miroir placé au fond du décor de chambre. Postel va donc se lancer, à la suite de Margaret L. Koster (2003) dans une histoire de mort. La femme en vert est décédée. Elle est un instant sortie du Purgatoire. Sa main brûle celle de son veuf. L'auteur s'appuie là sur des textes médiévaux mêlant théologie et histoires de revenants. La dame n'est donc pas enceinte. Il s'agit d'une mode des débits du XVe siècle, que l'on retrouver dans le costume féminin national coréen, le hanbok.

Le couple a pourtant eu un enfant. Mort-né, sans doute. Le prouverait une troisième bougie du splendide lustre de cuire. Allumée, la première incarne l'homme. Elle se trouve du reste dans la partie gauche du tableau, le lieu de vie. Eteinte et à droite, la seconde désignerait l'état du spectre. Mais il y a un moignon de cire sur une troisième bobèche. La femme sans identité (on a parlé de Giovanna Cenami) a-t-elle été remplacée? Oui pour Postel. Il y a au fond du tableau des pantoufles, signes d'une félicité nouvelle. «Elles préexistent à l'apparition et elles persisteront après elles.» Ce sont donc celles de la remplaçante, à moins que l'époux fidèle n'ait laissé la chambre, meublée avec un luxe extrême, en l'état après la mort de son épouse. En couches, sans doute.

Un jeu de construction

Je ne vous donne là que quelques-unes des innombrables suppositions que l'auteur aligne en tenant compte des mentalités de la fin du Moyen Age. Il s'agit d'un jeu de construction. Tout demeure improuvable. Il existe même le risque que l'hypothèse de départ soit fausse. Passionnant, le jeu n'est pas nouveau en soi. Certaines œuvres attirent le commentaire, au danger de la sur-interprétation. Notons que beaucoup d'entre elle sont flamandes et remontent aux années 1500. Je viens de retrouver dans ma bibliothèque «Jérôme Bosch et la fable populaire» de Jacques Darriulat (Lagune, 1995), un auteur qui semble avoir disparu. Il y ramenait «L'escamoteur» à une légende médiévale mettant en scène l'empereur romain Néron. J'ignore quelle est aujourd'hui la version officielle du sujet d'un petit tableau de Bosch en apparence très anodin. On dit et on écrit tant de choses...

(1) Les Anglais, plus aventureux, parlent cependant de "The Arnolfini Weddding".

Texte d'Etienne Dumont.

«L'affaire Arnolfini», de Jean-Philippe Postel préface de Daniel Pennac, aux Editions Actes Sud, 159 pages.

http://www.bilan.ch/etienne-dumont/courants-dart/livreles-epoux-arnolfini-de-van-eyck-disseques-jean-philippe-postel