Four 'drollities' fro paintee mth d ceiling formerly at Prestongrange, by M R Apted and W Norman Robertson

SUMMARY decoratioe Th n painte ceiline th n dgo dated 1581 whic discoveres hwa t Prestongrangda 196n ei 2 and subsequently moved to Merchiston Castle included four grotesque figures without known parallel in Scottish painted decoration elsewhere characteristice Th . f thesso e figures were sufficiently similao rt suggest at the time of discovery that they were all derived from a common source, presumably a collection of engravings, which could not then be identified. It now seems likely that this source was the Songes drolatiques Pantagruel,e d a boo f engravingko s publishe Parin di n 1565si , since this small volume contains versions of all four figures. One of the four also appears in an engraving of much the same period preserve librar e Bibliotheque th th n df i y o e Nationale wero , Paristw e d use Inig,an y db o Jone provido st e costume designs for a masque staged in London in 1640. In all these cases the figures were regarded as amusing rather than sinister thao ,s t their appearanc t Prestongrangea e doe t necessarilsno y implys a , has been suggested, that the ceiling decoration there was connected with black magic.

THE 'DROLLITIES' FROM PRESTONGRANGE The discover paintea f o y d ceilin t Prestongrangga e durin repaire gth f 1962so , although unexpected itseln i t f no surprisin s wa , g houssince parth e f eeth o t concerne buils tima t dwa a te normahoms e whe gentlemaa th wa f r et no i fo l substancf npaintedo o s e b o e.t Mark Ker, owner of Prestongrange, was just such a man - Commendator of Newbattle, a member of the Privy Council and an Extraordinary Lord of Session. Nor was the decoration in itself unusual, consisting as it did of a miscellaneous collection of emblems and other devices of varying origin, divided into strips by decorated beams supporting the ceiling above, and loosely linked together, where appropriate, by continuous bands of arabesque pattern. The colouring (monochrome on an orange background) was, however inclusioe , th unusual s groua wa f no f fous po a , r grotesque figures of a type not hitherto recorded elsewhere in , which appeared to fit uncomfortably into the scheme of decoration as a whole. It seemed reasonable to assume on the basis of experience gained at Rossend Castle and elsewhere (Apted and Robertson 1972) that these figures had been copie somn di e detail fro mcommoa n source-book, althoug time th et ha thi se b coul t no d identified. It is now known that the figures were in fact copies, probably from a book called the Songes drolatiques de Pantagruel published in Paris in 1565 (Breton 1565). It is not absolutely certain tha engravinge tth thin si s book wer actuae eth l source since the attributee yar Rabelaio dt s whdied oha d twelve years earlier (1553 could an ) d therefore have been reproduced previously somn i e other form elsewhere, while other secondary sources certainly existed ,seriee sucth s sha o f e Bibliothequengravingth n i w no se Nationale, Paris, which alse oth includef o e on s Prestongrange figures facte Th ., however, tha l foual t r figures appea Songese th n ri drolatiques suggest that indeethis swa source-booe dth kpaintere useth y db Prestongrangef o s . Three th f eo figures from the Songes drolatiques, including two of those employed at Prestongrange, were APTE ROBERTSOND DAN : FOUR 'DROLLITIES' FROM PRESTONGRANG9 15 | E subsequently use Inigy db o Jone costums sa e design masqua r sfo e produce r theidfo r Majesties at Whitehall in 1640 (Walpole Society 1924, 124, pi 44a). face tTh tha figuree th t t Prestongrangsa e were copied fro mbooa engravingf ko n i t no s si itself of special significance since the practice has been amply demonstrated elsewhere (see above, and Apted 1964, 2, 273 and 3, pi 28b; 1966, pis 41-2). What is important in the present context is the significance attached to the figures in the 16th century in view of the fact that their inclusion in the ceiling paintings has been used to suggest a link between this decoration and the practice of black magic at Prestongrange. In the detailed account of the ceiling written soon after its discovery (Murra alt ye 1966) states i t i , d tha abandonmene tth house th f 160n eo i t 9 markee dth end of a period when it was 'steeped in the mysteries of witchcraft and necromancy' and that the ceiling was a 'unique and tangible monument to that faith'. Part of the argument for this conclusion was presence base th fou e n th do r f eo grotesque s with their 'diabolical, evil-eye expressionsd an ' for this reaso worts i nt i h lookin t thesga e figures ligh agaie know w whath f to n no i theif s nti o r origins. Songese Th drolatiques publishes Richarwa e on y db d Breto consistd nan f 12so 0 engravings with an introduction. The writer of the latter, presumably Monsieur Breton, explains that he has been encouraged to publish what is the last work of the late Francois Rabelais because of his close association with that autho declared ran s tha objects hi t publishinn si provido t e gar e something o pas t e tim r younth s fo e g peopl a sourcs wel a es r a makinl fo e g grotesque r devisino s g masquerade othey an r purposfo r o s e justifie occasione th y b d t coulI . arguee db d that these objects were precisely fulfillepaintere th y b dt Prestongrang sa Inigy b r oeo Jone t Whitehallsa . illustratione Th s were originally published without captions numbea t ,bu subsequenf ro t facsimile editions were printed with the addition of commentaries added by the editors to explain the meaning of the illustrations and relating them to the previously published works of Rabelais. Of one figure (pi 18b edition a ) f 186no 9 says 'N'est-i s plupa ls nature voire d l , dan t aimablce s e railleur, Panurge allan campagnn te e amoureuse', whil grotesque eth e dwarf (pi 18a dismisses )i 'sans da s doute un des cinquante-trois mille fils que Pantagruel engendra dans un moment d'oublie'. The dwarf demonstrates, incidentally, thae Prestongrangth t e paintert cop e originalno th yd di s s slavishl t modifieybu d the msuio t t their purpos source th e- e figur thin ei s instanc curioua s ei s monster with a hump on its chest, no arms, one human leg and one bird's claw, while the Prestongrange copy shows basically the same figure, but with two human legs, one complete, the other with the foot amputated and supported on a crutch. A comparison of the two versions also demonstrate Prestongrange skile th sf th o l faciae filles th painte ha n ldi o detailrwh whaf so s ti in origin no more than a cartoon - a reminder of the close links between the portrait and decorative (Thomsoy painterda e th f nso 1974). One of the four figures at Prestongrange (the 'Panurge' referred to above) also appears on a serie f engravingso s preserve Bibliotheque th n di e National Parisn ei . These engravings, which cover four sheets headee ar , d Histoire d'une drollerie Facetieuse, Manageu d Lucressee d aux yeux de beuf, Michault& Crouppiere mary,n so avec ceux qui furent semonz banquet.u a e bizarrTh e rustic figures taking part in the wedding celebrations include the Prestongrange 'Panurge', bridegrooe th althoug t no s i accordint me hbu h engravine nota th go n t e o g Guillemin Grossepence, Seigneur de place nette. foue Th r sheets concerne containee dar d withi nfolia o volumetw f o e on , liste Receuils da piecese d facetieuse t bouffonese 1500e d 1630 a which form parcollectioa f o t n deposited in the Bibliotheque Nationale by the Abbe de Marolles in the 17th century (Bouchot 1895) engravinge Th . undatede believese ar ar t havbu ,o d t e been copie parn di t fro Songese mth drolatiques rather tha othee abouty nth rwa . Since they contai figuree th f no s onl e froye on mth Prestongrange ceiling this seems likely to have been the case. The engravings form part of a group 16 | 0PROCEEDING S OF THE SOCIETY, 1974-5 attribute Cabinee th y Estampes db de t Bibliotheque th f so e National Francoio et s Desprezr o , Deserpres, which include other comic scenes history,a of the siege sai e o Jonasfar a d Troy d d an an havo t e been widely circulate Continene th n secone do th n ti d16te halth hf fo century . so-callee Th d Tanurge' figur alss oewa use Inigy d b thref o o e Jonee on take s sa n froe mth Songes drolatiques, whicf o appeaPrestongrango e hth tw n ro e ceiling masque .Th e concernes dwa called Salmacida Spolia and was presented by the King and Queen at Whitehall on Tuesday, 21 January 1640. Entry Number 9 was for 'Fowre Grotesques or drolities, in the most fantasticall shapes that coul devisede costumee db th d r threan ' sfo f theseo e four were inspiree th y db engraving Songese th n si drolatiques (Orge Strond an l g 1974, 732, 770-1). The significanc evidence t abovoccasione th f ou th o eplait 16ts e n e i d eo se th h an n- n s i 17th centuries of which we have any knowledge these figures were not regarded as sinister beings but rather as drolls in the long succession of comic and often cruel figures dating far back into the passurvivind tan g todapersone th n y i Punc f so Judyd Prestongrange han .Th e 'drollities' factn ,i , are not in the tradition of the witches of Macbeth but of Bottom the Weaver. This does not prove, of course, tha figuree th t Prestongrangt a s e were indee regardeo ds have evidenco w e n d- o t s ea what was in the minds either of those who commissioned the ceiling or of those who painted it - but face th t that they were used clearl yitseln i doe t f sno prov e tha ceiline th t evidencs gi f blaceo k magi inhibir co paintinge th t s from bein perhaps ga mighe son t expec moro n t e tha exampln na e of 'Antique Work' as defined by Henry Peacham, i.e. 'an unnaturall or unorderly composition for delight sak f meneo , beasts, birds, fishes, flower saywithoue c et s) we Rims (a t r reasoneo ' (Peacham 1606, 35-7).

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This account of the Prestongrange 'drollities' stems from information provided by Dr F J Stopp, who first drew our attention to the Songes drolatiques and to the Manage de Lucresse aux yeux de beuf. The photographs of the Prestongrange ceiling were taken by Mr J Pugh and the survey drawing traced fro mphotographia c montag Misy eb s Thea McDonald platee e Th . sar reproduced by courtesy of the Department of the Environment, the London Library, the Bibliotheque Nationale and the Devonshire Collection, Chatsworth, respectively.

REFERENCES Apted, M R 1964 Painting in Scotland from the 14th to the 17th centuries. Unpublished University thesis. Apted, MR 1966 The Painted Ceilings of Scotland 1550-1650. Edinburgh. Robertsond Aptedan R M , Norma ,W n 1972 'Two painted ceilings from Rossend Castle, Burntisland', Proc Antiqc So Scot, (1971-2)4 10 , 222-35. Bouchot, Henri 1895 Le cabinet des estampes de la Bibliotheque Nationale. Paris. Breton, Richard 1565 Les songes drolatiques de Pantagruel. Paris. Murray, G, Apted, M R and Hodkinson, I 1966 'Prestongrange and its painted ceiling', E Lothian Antiq Field Natur Soc, (1966)0 1 , 1-42. Orgel, S and Strong, R 1974 Inigo Jones. The Theatre of the Stuart Court. University of California Press. Peacham, Henr t oyf Ar Drawing:160e Th 6 London. Thomson, Duncan 1974 The Life and Art of George Jamesone. Oxford Studies in the History of Art and Architecture. Walpole Society 1924 Designs by Inigo Jones for Masques and Plays at Court. Introduction by Percy SimpsoBellF C . d Oxfordnan . The Society indebtedis Departmentthe to Environment the of granta for towards cost thisthe of paper