Getty Museum

The Drunken Harlot

Date

about 1255–1260

Medium

Tempera colors, gold leaf, colored washes, pen and ink

Culture

English

Department

Manuscripts

Institution

Getty Museum

>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 *E* below echoes the harlot's actions, holding a drinking horn and jug while her hair streams out behind her.

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