XXIII 



THE STRAWBERRY 



The strawberry stands apart from all other 

 symbolical fruits. It is found in Italian, 

 Flemish and German art, and also in the English 

 miniatures. There is a finely-executed Spanish 

 miniature of the sixteenth century in South 

 Kensington Museum. The Pelican in her Piety 

 is in the centre and the border is formed of roses 

 alternating with strawberries. As a symbol 

 it is not only widespread, but of comparatively 

 early origin. In Siena it appears as a flower of 

 Heaven, growing with lilies, violets and carna- 

 tions, in the ' Paradise ' of Giovanni di Paolo 

 painted in 1445 ; ' and, almost at the same time, 

 a master of the Upper Rhine painted the well- 

 known ' Madonna of the Strawberries,' ^ which 

 represents the Virgin sitting upon the edge of a 



1 Belle Arti, Siena. ' Town Museum, Solothurn. 



268 



