Aeneid

In the upper right corner, Achates, Aeneas, Acestes and another labelled person, likely Ascanius, stand with their followers next to a large fountain watching a foot race. To the left of the fountain, prizes have been laid out for the contestants; there is a horse with full trappings for the winner, a set of Thracian arrows for the second place, and an Argive helmet for the third place (303-14). A lion skin, awarded to Salius (351-2), and a shield, awarded to Nisus (353-61), are displayed among the prizes. Virgil has the race take place in a valley, the shape of a theatre (286-9), but Brant has it take place in a fenced-off portion of a field very close to a building that might be the palace of Acestes. The contestants, in the lower half of the image, run toward a marker on the fence, which, inexplicably, is shown here as a human arm nailed to a post. Euryalus, in the lead, touches the marker first. Close behind him is Helymus. Salius would be third, but Nisus [Nysus], who has fallen on the ground, reaches out his leg to trip Salius. He does this to help Euryalus, his lover, gain first place. Diores, shown in last place here, will soon pass the fallen runners to take third. (318-39) (Katy Purington)

Woodcut illustration from the “Strasbourg Vergil,” edited by Sebastian Brant: Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera cum quinque vulgatis commentariis expolitissimisque figuris atque imaginibus nuper per Sebastianum Brant superadditis (Strasbourg: Johannis Grieninger, 1502), fol. 238v, executed by an anonymous engraver under the direction of Brant.

In this image, Aeneas awards prizes to the participants of the boat race. At the bottom of the image, a man herds three bullocks toward the ships (247). In the middle of the image, Aeneas places a crown of laurel on Cloanthus, the winner of the boat race (245-6); a boy hands Cloanthus his prize, a richly embroidered cloak (250-7). Above this and to the left, Aeneas, with the help of two slaves, presents the second place winner, Mnesthus [Mnesche] with what is supposed to be a coat of mail (258-65), rendered entirely in cross-hatching, and thus barely visible. To the right of this scene, a man presents a set of cauldrons and bowls to Gyas, who came in third (266-7). On the right, Sergestus brings his broken ship into the harbor holding a single oar, and a slave woman with twin boys standing on the shore is his prize (268-85). In the lower right, Menetes, the pilot of Cloanthus, who got knocked off the ship by the impatient Cloanthus, has swam to shore and now sits coughing up water (178-80). (Katy Purington)

Woodcut illustration from the “Strasbourg Vergil,” edited by Sebastian Brant: Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera cum quinque vulgatis commentariis expolitissimisque figuris atque imaginibus nuper per Sebastianum Brant superadditis (Strasbourg: Johannis Grieninger, 1502), fol. 237v, executed by an anonymous engraver under the direction of Brant.

Four of Aeneas's crews compete in a ship race. On the right, prizes are displayed in a fenced-off area; these prizes include a chest of silver or gold, an ornate tripod table, and a pile of armor. Behind the prizes, Aeneas, Acestes and a crowd of Trojans and Dardans stand cheering on the contestants. At the bottom left of the image, Mnesthus sits at the helm of the Pristis [Pystris], by all appearances, in the lead in this race. Behind him, Cloanthus commands the Scylla; he is in second place, and looking for first place. He looks to the heavens and calls on the gods for aid; hearing his vows, Portunus and Phorcus push the ship from behind (233-43). In third place is the Chimera, with Gyas in command. They have lost their early lead due to the timidness of Moenetes, who did not dare to sail close to the shore for fear of rocks. Therefore, Gyas pushes Moenetes off the ship, taking his oar and steering the vessel himself (159-77). Sergestus, commanding the Centaur, has steered his ship too close to the rocks in pursuit of the win, and has crashed into some large rocks (202-9). In the upper left corner, there is an ilex (oak) branch placed on a rock; this rock represents the halfway point, at which the ships must turn back toward the shore. (Katy Purington)

Woodcut illustration from the “Strasbourg Vergil,” edited by Sebastian Brant: Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera cum quinque vulgatis commentariis expolitissimisque figuris atque imaginibus nuper per Sebastianum Brant superadditis (Strasbourg: Johannis Grieninger, 1502), fol. 234r, executed by an anonymous engraver under the direction of Brant.

Aeneas and his followers have landed at Dardanus in Sicily, the burial place of Anchises. Aeneas, Ascanius, Acestes and Achates, wearing garlands of myrtle (72-4), stand by the shrine of Anchises. A priest stands next to them. A very mature Ascanius pours a liquid offering onto the altar. There are five goblets shown, though Vergil describes six: two hold unmixed wine, two hold fresh milk, and two hold the blood of the two oxen that lie dead to the right of the tomb (Hīc duo rīte merō lībāns carchēsia Bacchō fundit humī, duo lacte novō, duo sanguine sacrō, purpureōsque iacit flōrēs ac tālia fātur 77-8). Flowers have been scattered around the edges of the tomb (79). A large serpent rises up in front of the tomb, and, stretching across it, sticks its tongue out to taste the liquid offerings (84-9). (Katy Purington)

Woodcut illustration from the “Strasbourg Vergil,” edited by Sebastian Brant: Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera cum quinque vulgatis commentariis expolitissimisque figuris atque imaginibus nuper per Sebastianum Brant superadditis (Strasbourg: Johannis Grieninger, 1502), fol. 232r, executed by an anonymous engraver under the direction of Brant.

Aeneas and his fleet sail away from Carthage, while behind them the pyre on which Dido has committed suicide burns with high flames (1-4). Dido lies naked among the flames. In the top left corner, a storm rages (8-16), which has forced the fleet of Aeneas to change course (17-23) and sail to the land ruled by Acestes, a fellow Trojan (23-34). Palinurus, the helmsman, stands in the crow's nest of Aeneas's ship, shouting down to Aeneas below (12-25); Brant makes him a lookout, when he is meant to be steering the ship. On the left, below the storm, King Acestes greets the first of the Trojan ships landing on his shores (35-41). (Katy Purington)

Woodcut illustration from the “Strasbourg Vergil,” edited by Sebastian Brant: Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera cum quinque vulgatis commentariis expolitissimisque figuris atque imaginibus nuper per Sebastianum Brant superadditis (Strasbourg: Johannis Grieninger, 1502), fol. 230v, executed by an anonymous engraver under the direction of Brant.

In the right half of the image is a large pyre, which Dido has built on the pretense of burning everything Aeneas left behind him (494-7). At the top of the pyre is the bed in which Aeneas slept, which is shown with an image of Aeneas on it, a representation of the things he left (494-7). Below the pyre are a bellows and a bundle of kindling, tools necessary to make a good fire. On the left, a crowd of onlookers, including Dido's sister Anna and the nurse Barce, shown wearing a wreath on her head (632-3, 637), stands watching what they think will be a sacrifice and ritual pyre meant to free the queen of her love for Aeneas. Dido stands at the top of a set of steps next to the pyre, so that she stands just slightly above the burning pile of wood. She plunges a sword, a gift from Aeneas, into her breast (646-7, 663-5), and begins to fall in the direction of the pyre. In Vergil's text, Dido climbs up onto the pyre and onto the bed itself, where she makes a small speech (651-61) and then falls on her sword, which is the honorable way to commit suicide. Above the pyre, Iris, sent by Juno, prepares to cut the golden lock of hair from the queen's head, to send her soul to the underworld (693-705). (Katy Purington)

Woodcut illustration from the “Strasbourg Vergil,” edited by Sebastian Brant: Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera cum quinque vulgatis commentariis expolitissimisque figuris atque imaginibus nuper per Sebastianum Brant superadditis (Strasbourg: Johannis Grieninger, 1502), fol. 228r, executed by an anonymous engraver under the direction of Brant.

Aeneas, who previously has been visited by a vision of Mercury (556-70), rouses his men to leave the harbors of Carthage (571-83). On the main ship, which holds Aeneas, the men row swiftly in unison to leave the shore as quickly as possible (581-3). In the upper right corner of the image, Dido watches them leave from the window of a tower. This is a departure from the text, in which Dido simply sees the empty harbor and knows they have left (586-8). The combination of the scenes makes sense if the goal is to maximize the use of illustration space, and the change is not significant enough to cause much confusion when used with the text. (Katy Purington)

Woodcut illustration from the “Strasbourg Vergil,” edited by Sebastian Brant: Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera cum quinque vulgatis commentariis expolitissimisque figuris atque imaginibus nuper per Sebastianum Brant superadditis (Strasbourg: Johannis Grieninger, 1502), fol. 226r, executed by an anonymous engraver under the direction of Brant.

In the lower half of the image, Anna and Dido watch as a priest completes a sacrifice. To the left, the priest pours an offering of wine on the altar (452-55). To the right, Anna watches the sacrifice with a cloth covering her face while Dido looks over her shoulder at a pyre behind her that has not yet been lit (494-5, 505-7). In the upper left is the temple of Sychaeus, the late husband of Dido, whose image can be seen on the tomb, and whom Dido has heard calling to her at night (457-61). In the top right corner, winged Mercury advises Aeneas to leave Carthage before Dido decides to attack him with her ships (554-570). (Katy Purington)

Woodcut illustration from the “Strasbourg Vergil,” edited by Sebastian Brant: Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera cum quinque vulgatis commentariis expolitissimisque figuris atque imaginibus nuper per Sebastianum Brant superadditis (Strasbourg: Johannis Grieninger, 1502), fol. 224r, executed by an anonymous engraver under the direction of Brant.

Dido, with her face covered in grief, begs Anna to talk to Aeneas (416-36). Aeneas stands in a ship with some of his men, and looks remorseful, a sign that Anna will not be able to convince Aeneas to stay (437-449). In the top left, Aeneas's men prepare the ships for travel: one holds a piece of lumber and another holds an oar (397-9). At the top right, a man stands outside a temple while another man holding a sacrificial knife leads a pair of either pigs or cattle in the direction of the temple. (Katy Purington)

Woodcut illustration from the “Strasbourg Vergil,” edited by Sebastian Brant: Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera cum quinque vulgatis commentariis expolitissimisque figuris atque imaginibus nuper per Sebastianum Brant superadditis (Strasbourg: Johannis Grieninger, 1502), fol. 222r, executed by an anonymous engraver under the direction of Brant.

In the upper left, Mnestheus, Sergestus and Cloanthus direct the preparation of Aeneas's ships for departure (287-91). In the lower half of the image, members of Aeneas's crew load arms and provisions onto ships. In the upper right, Dido berates Aeneas, who attempts to defend his actions and explain why he must leave (305-87). Dido holds to her face a piece of fabric, either part of her veil or a handkerchief, an indication that she is emotional. In Vergil's portrayal of Dido, she is much more upset than Brant portrays. (Katy Purington)

Woodcut illustration from the “Strasbourg Vergil,” edited by Sebastian Brant: Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera cum quinque vulgatis commentariis expolitissimisque figuris atque imaginibus nuper per Sebastianum Brant superadditis (Strasbourg: Johannis Grieninger, 1502), fol. 218v, executed by an anonymous engraver under the direction of Brant.