Pruning the Vine » March page from the Belles Heures

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March page from the <em>Belles Heures</em>

Herman, Paul, and Jean de Limbourg (Franco-Netherlandish, active in France, by 1399???1416)
The Belles Heures of Jean de France, Duc de Berry, 1405???1408/1409
Made in Paris, France
The Cloisters Collection, 1954 (54.1.1)
See the Collection Database to learn more about this work of art.

Here again the month of March is represented by two sturdy figures tending to the grapevines, the first agricultural task of the year. Unlike the prosperous and well-dressed men featured in the January and February pages of the Belles Heures, these men are peasants. One man’s bare feet are planted on the ground as he cultivates the earth around the naked vine stock, while the other tips a load of dark brown manure from a basket hoisted on his shoulder.

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