Physical Description
Description and Contents
MS 1-2006.1: parchment, 150 x 100 mm, 18 long lines ruled in red ink with 15 lines of text written in iron-gall ink on reverse
MS 355-1984: parchment pasted on paper, 153 x 100 mm
MS 1-2012.1: parchment pasted on paper, 154 x 101 mm
MS 1-2012.2: parchment pasted on paper, 152 x 104 mm
MS 1-2006.2: parchment pasted on paper, 155 x 103 mm
Agony in the Garden
With his hands clasped in prayer, Christ kneels in the Garden of Gethsemane, gazing up at an angel holding a cross, a symbol of his impending death. In the foreground, Christ’s disciples, Peter, John and perhaps James succumb to sleep, oblivious to his distress. A group of armed men, coming to arrest Christ, are shown in the background. Led by the traitor, Judas, they enter the garden. The men in the foreground may represent the spiritual pilgrims to which the poet refers. The miniature is set within an architectural frame with trees and foliage forming an arch over the scene.