Saint George II

I posted a photo of the Saint George of Eisenach yesterday, and commented that he looks effete. Susan reckons that the statue of Saint George in the castle of Wartburg (above Eisenach) takes that prize.

It's probably because this one doesn't have a monumental 'tache.

St George, Eisenach

This particularly effete looking chap is St George, patron saint of Eisenach. His armour dates him to the period 1550 to 1560, and is he is thought to have been cast from discarded tournament armour in 1549. As far as I can make out, he was always guilded.

He stands atop a sandstone pillar in the marketplace, and for many years served as the town water supply, water being piped through wooden pipes from springs above the town. The pillar has 4 extra little dragons which are the actual fountain.

Nice 'tache, though.

Girolles, Chanterelles and Trumpets

The Cantharellaceae family of fungi are all edible, but their nomenclature can cause a lot of confusion, and they have a few toxic but unrelated lookalikes, so you can't relax too much. The key is that Cantharellaceae do not have gills. They have irregular pleats on their undersides. Beginners need to really study them to be sure they can confidently recognise the Cantharellaceae pleats and not mistake them for gills. All of the toxic lookalikes have gills, so make sure you look carefully.

The current officially sanctioned vernacular naming system is that Cantharellus spp should be referred to as Girolles, and Craterellus spp should be referred to as Chanterelles (except for C. cornucopioides, which is referred to as a trumpet).

The greatest prize is the Girolle Cantharellus cibarius (Fr. Girolle). But these are not very common in the Touraine, so you might have to resort to buying them at a market. 

Winter Chanterelle Craterellus tubaeformis (Fr. Chanterelle en tube) and Girolles at a market.

Winter Chaterelles at a market. This species is abundant in the Touraine forests so you can forage your own if you have a good eye.

Yellowfoot Chanterelle Craterellus lutescens (Fr. Chanterelle jaune), foraged in the Forest of Loches. A localised but abundant species where it occurs.

Yellowfoot Chanterelle found in a woodland near Séligny.

Yellowfoot Chanterelle, showing the distinctive yellow colouring under the cap. Winter Chanterelles are grey under the cap.

Blackening Chanterelle Craterellus melanoxeros (Fr. Chanterelle noircissante), an uncommon species in the Touraine. These were found in the Forest of Preuilly.

Ashen Chanterelles Craterellus cinereus (Fr. Chanterelle cendrée), foraged in the Forest of Preuilly, and being cooked by me at home.

Ashen Chanterelles are an uncommon species, which I found in a small quantity in the Forest of Preuilly last year.

Ashen Chanterelles are very difficult to spot in the leaf litter.

Black Trumpets Craterellus cornucopioides (Fr. Trompettes de la mort) at a market.

Black Trumpets in the Forest of Preuilly.

All of these edible mushrooms can be found in the forests of the Touraine if you get your eye in. The rules in France are that you can forage up to 5 kilograms per person per day for personal consumption if you have the landowners permission. The outdoor market in Loches has several stalls in October and November that will sell wild mushrooms such as this, gathered by licenced commercial foragers.

Studies show that mushroom foraging for personal consumption is no threat to biodiversity, unless a site is badly trampled (compacting the soil). Using a rake is forbidden, because of the habitat disturbance, and in any case counterproductive, as you have to spend so much time cleaning and sorting the mushrooms from the leaf litter.

Not Chagall

I said on Wednesday that I confidently pointed at some stained glass windows in Metz Cathedral and told Susan "that's got to be Chagall".

I should have known I was wrong: Chagall is all swirls and freehand, and these are definitely cubist. These are the centre three panels of that set of windows, and they show The Last Supper, the crucifixion and the wedding at Cana. Looking at them I can see the last supper - the row of apostles' heads and plates down the left side. I can see the wedding at Cana - all those empty jars of wine. What I can't decipher is the crucifixion. I can see Mary in her traditional place (bottom right) but the rest is too abstract for me.

Jacques Villon designed the windows in 1957 for the Blessed Sacrament Chapel at Metz Cathedral. Charles Marq and Brigitte Simon made the glass, using acid etching. Villon was born Gaston Duchamp, brother of Marcel. 

Powdery Piggybacks

 Powdery Piggybacks found by me in the Forest of Preuilly.

This tiny uncommon mushroom may look small and innocuous but it is much more enigmatic than its simple appearance. Its presence and ability to parasitise and decompose its host, Brittlegill Russula spp mushrooms, is an important indicator of the health of its forest home. 

 

Found on an outing to a woodland at Ferrière les Beaulieu.

The scientific name is Asterophora lycoperdoides and its French name is Astérophore faux-lycoperdon. The miniature mushrooms 'piggyback' in small groups on old Brittlegills, and after starting out powdered white, soon become covered with what looks like cinnamon powder. Hence the English name of Powdery Piggyback mushroom. Unusually for a gilled mushroom, this powder on the top of the cap is made up of asexual spore like reproductive bodies. This is quite unlike 'normal' gilled mushrooms, which produce sexual spores that are dropped from the gills to reproduce.  

Found on an outing to a woodland at Ferrière les Beaulieu.

The species is widespread, and considered to be uncommon, but because of its small size it may be overlooked and under recorded rather than genuinely rare. You are most likely to see it in beech forests, or mixed beech and spruce, in damp places.

Chagall Glass in Metz

Before we went to Germany in August we saw a TV program about Metz Cathedral. As a  family member had recently been there and raved about it, we thought we'd go, specifically to see the Chagall windows.

We were partially successful.

The photo above shows the first Chagall window in the north ambulatory and shows Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac, Jacob wrestling the angel, Jacob's dream of the ladder, and Moses at the burning bush. Noah and Joseph appear to sit in miniature in the tracery, and an angel with a rainbow appears to crown the top.

This photo shows the second Chagall window in the north ambulatory. Moses receives the Law and, in some readings, leads the Hebrews across the Red Sea. In the centre, David plays the harp, (that's the green and yellow bit). On the right, Jeremiah mourns Jerusalem in purple and blue. Above the three lancets, a rose window is read as the Crucifixion, placing the prophets beneath the cross.

It's difficult to actually know what the windows DO actually show. Chagall is abstract enough that the windows can be interpreted, and some people have interpreted differently. I tried to use peer reviewed articles where possible.

What we do know is that Chagall drew the designs and applied highlights of grisaille (black and grey) to the glass. Charles Marq and Brigitte Simon, of the Atelier Simon-Marq in Reims, cut, fired, and leaded the pieces. Marq developed a process of veneering pigment onto glass, which let Chagall layer colors on a single piece.

And the partially successful bit?

That's because there are other Chagall windows we didn't see. We did see (and photograph) a window by Jacques Villon (born Gaston Duchamp, the brother of Marcel Duchamp), which I confidently identified to Susan as one of the Chagall windows. In my defence, Villon also worked with Charles Marq, so the glass may come from the same workshop as Chagall's windows

I give myself four out of ten, mainly for effort.