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Bagoas/Bagoe Pleads on Behalf of Nabarzanes

Master of the Jardin de vertueuse consolationabout 1470–1475

The J. Paul Getty Museum

The J. Paul Getty Museum
Los Angeles, United States

Bagoas, a handsome eunuch in the original narrative but a beautiful woman in Vasco da Lucena's translation and in the miniature, stands before Alexander in a green gown. She wants to persuade Alexander to pardon Nabarzanes, a Persian who had plotted against the Persian king, Darius III. At the right, Queen Thalestris of the Amazons approaches with her followers, hoping that she can persuade Alexander to father a child with her. Although this is just the sort of story that Vasco dismissed as "false and impossible," he reported it in his translation, and the artists followed his lead by including it in the miniature.

Details

  • Title: Bagoas/Bagoe Pleads on Behalf of Nabarzanes
  • Creator: Master of the Jardin de vertueuse consolation
  • Date Created: about 1470–1475
  • Location Created: Lille (written), France; Bruges (illuminated), Belgium
  • Physical Dimensions: Leaf: 43.2 × 33 cm (17 × 13 in.)
  • Type: Folio
  • External Link: Find out more about this object on the Museum website.
  • Medium: Tempera colors, gold leaf, gold paint, and ink on parchment
  • Terms of Use: Open Content
  • Number: 83.MR.178.133v
  • Culture: French and Flemish
  • Credit Line: The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, Ms. Ludwig XV 8, fol. 133v
  • Creator Display Name: Master of the Jardin de vertueuse consolation and assistant (Flemish, active 3rd quarter of 15th century)
  • Classification: Manuscripts (Documents)

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