The Drunken Harlot
Unknownabout 1255–1260
The J. Paul Getty Museum
Los Angeles, United States
I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. (Apocalypse 17:6)
In the miniature, the harlot dances with abandon outdoors, holding a jug in one hand and a cup in the other. Other drinking vessels lie at her feet, already emptied of their contents. In the text, Saint John's response is one of "wonder," expressed in his upraised hands in the miniature. To explain what prompted this, the artist represented the harlot with pink cheeks, flowing hair and exposed legs, all signs of moral laxity.
The woman in the initial Ebelow echoes the harlot's actions, holding a drinking horn and jug while her hair streams out behind her.
- Title: The Drunken Harlot
- Creator: Unknown
- Date Created: about 1255–1260
- Location Created: London (probably), England
- Physical Dimensions: Leaf: 31.9 × 22.5 cm (12 9/16 × 8 7/8 in.)
- Type: Folio
- External Link: Find out more about this object on the Museum website.
- Medium: Tempera colors, gold leaf, colored washes, pen and ink on parchment
- Terms of Use: Open Content
- Number: 83.MC.72.36v
- Culture: English
- Credit Line: The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, Ms. Ludwig III 1, fol. 36v
- Creator Display Name: Unknown
- Classification: Manuscripts (Documents)
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