Page f86v3

[f86v5]  [index]  [f87r]

Identification

  Title: "T-O Map and Garden of Eden"
  Page: f86v3 = NL (Rene) = p176 (Stolfi)
  Folio: f86
  Panels: f86v3
  Bifolio: bN1 = f85+f86
  Quire: N (Rene) = XIV (Beinecke)

  Newbold plate VII, calls it f86v
  SciAm
  Brumbaugh p54, calls it f85r
  Same as or includes page 174?

  This is the back side of the bottom center panel of a 12-panel fold-out.
  The bottom side of the panel is a folio edge.
  The top side of the panel is the horizontal crease.
  The left side of the panel is a vertical ridge crease.
  The right side of the panel is the binding gutter.

Attributes

  Language: B (Currier)
  Hand: 3 (Currier)
  Subsets: C (Rene), cos (Stolfi)
  Subject: cosmological
  Colors: ??? (Reeds)

Description

  Gathering mark 14.

  Text and drawing take up most of the page, right up to the 
  edges, except for some white space left in the middle.

  Four tapering, densely decorated "biological" structures
  grow from the four corners of the page towards the center.

  Between these structures there are four paragraphs of normal-looking text,
  right next to the respective edge, to be read clockwise.
  In the rectangular area bounded by them, there are two more
  paragraphs, interrupted by part of the Northwest structure.

  At the very center of the page, below the two extra paragraphs, there is
  a mechanically drawn "T-O map"---a circle cut into three sectors
  by a diameter (from 09:30 to 03:30) and a perpendicular radius (at 00:30).

  At the left of the T-O map, and partly over it, there is a faint
  irregular (pencil?) scribble, mostly illegible, resembling a young
  child's scrawl. With some imagination, the first row can be read as
  two EVA <l> (larger than normal), a latin "n" with acute accent, and
  a latin "F"; below them is an EVA <s>, with very dark <c> and
  lighter plume. But none of these readings can be considered
  significant.

  In the structure descriptions that follow, "up" means towards
  the center of the page, "down" means towards its corner, 
  "left" is clockwise and "right" is counter-clockwise.

  The Northeast structure looks like a chalyx with thick stem, covered
  with rounded, upward-pointing scales (or close-packed leaves). From
  its hollow there comes forth a converging bundle of lines, like a
  strong water jet (or a bundle of stalks). Halfway though the "jet"
  but in front of it there is a bird with outspread wings. The "jet"
  ends bruptly after a short distance, to be replaced by a dotted band
  (dust? droplets? seeds?).

  The Southeast structure has the shape of a light bulb, with the
  narrow end pointing up . The base (wider end) is wrapped in a
  leaf-like chalyx. The bulb is decorated with several bands of knobs,
  hatchings, and upwards-growing scales. The narrow end (nearest to
  the center of the page) ends in a hole with dotted lip. Coming out
  from the hole we see the head of another bird, with its ouspread
  wings partly visible, and three curved "stalks" carrying three
  corncob-like objects.

  The Southwest structure has a base that looks like a flattened
  flower, whose petals are made of thick riveted metal plate. On top
  of that "flower" there are three similar "stages", each smaller than
  the previous one. Each "stage" looks like a ribbed stalk, short and
  broad, ending with a multilobed sleeve which holds a heap of round
  objects with dots at their centers. From the third stage there grows
  a short "jet" (or a fourth ribbed stalk) that opens out into a 
  funnel or corolla with serrated borders.  The right half of this 
  funnel is dotted.

  The Northwest structure looks like a wide and short cylindrical base
  with a band of scales or flaps around its top part, pointing down.
  On top of this base is a short conical dome covered with scales or
  leaves. Each scale has a dot. From the very tip of the dome there
  sprouts a divergent bundle of lines that ends with a cloud of dots,
  like a water jet.

  Behind the Northwest structure there is a human figure with light
  long hair, probably a woman. Only her head and hand are visible,
  just to the right of the "water jet".

  Behind the Southwest structure there is another human figure with
  short dark hair, probably a man. Only his right arm, part of his
  breast, and half of his face are visible, on the left side of the
  structure.

  The man's right hand seems to be holding a short tube, pointed
  towards the woman. Issuing from it is a short jet of dots that ends
  abruptly after a couple of feet. (The man may also be throwing
  things at the woman, and the "tube" could then be the motion traces.)
  The woman seems to be waving at the man.

Comments

References

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