Festival of the Archers

Let’s dance In the fifteenth century, cities in the Low Countries relied on civic militias to help maintain public order. Armed guilds like this also represented their town at festivities elsewhere, and organised competitions and parties of their own. A well-attended festival staged by one of Antwerp’s four crossbow companies is what we see here. The host was the ‘Guild…

Let’s dance In the fifteenth century, cities in the Low Countries relied on civic militias to help maintain public order. Armed guilds like this also represented their town at festivities elsewhere, and organised competitions and parties of their own. A well-attended festival staged by one of Antwerp’s four crossbow companies is what we see here. The host was the ‘Guild of the Old Handbow’, which owned the painting for many years. The fortresses in the background help us read this lively panel as we can link their coats of arms and flags to the prestigious guildhalls in the centre of Antwerp, where the various companies were headquartered. The mood at the second castle from the right is festive: this is where the ‘Guild of the Old Handbow’ is based, the organiser of the festival. In the middle, we can see a man with the guild insignia on his sleeve seated on a throne, above which hangs a Jerusalem cross. Two fools are dancing in front of him and a black man is playing music. They are performing a moresca or Morris dance, variations of which can be found all over Europe. The best dancer will receive an apple from the woman dressed in red, suggesting that this might also be a wedding party. All the crossbowmen in the walled garden are wearing the insignia of the ‘Old Handbow’, while those outside belong to other crossbow companies. There is some kind of game or competition going on: to the left, members of the ‘Old Arbalest’ guild are trying to gain entry. Two other ‘footbowmen’ have ended up in the moat around the fortress. Members of yet another guild, that of the ‘Young Handbow’, are trying to crawl through the fence. The Master of Frankfurt – named for the German city where examples of his work can be found – was an artist active in Antwerp. He cannot be identified for certain, but we do know what he looked like as the KMSKA has a double portrait of him and his wife. The man dressed in the brown cloak who is seated with a lady on the grass in the right foreground of this painting is plainly the same one as in the portrait.