IV 



THE IRIS 



The only rival to the lilhim candidiim as the lily 

 of the Virgin is the iris. Strictly speaking, it is 

 not a lily at all, for the Iridacea and the Liliacea 

 are distinct botanical orders. But in Germany it 

 is known as the sword-lily, from its sword-shaped 

 leaves; in France it has always been identified 

 with the ' fleur-de-lys ' ; in Spain it is a ' hrio ' 

 — a lily — and Shakespeare writes : 



' . . . And lilies of all kinds 

 The Flower-de-luce being one, ' 



Its first appearance as a religious symbol is in the 

 work of the early Flemish masters, where it both 

 accompanies and replaces the white lily as the 

 flower of the Virgin. Roger van der Weyden * 

 paints both flowers in a vase before the Virgin, and 

 the iris alone in another picture ^ of Mary with 

 the Holy Child. In his * Annunciation ' ^ the vase 



1 Frankfort-on-the-Maine. - Berlin. 



" Alte Pinakothek, Munich. 



62 



