Isolated

I went for a walk along a stretch of the Pennine Way today and thought that this structure might be convertible for anyone seeking real isolation in these troubled times. Blimey it was chilly up there, with a strong, icy wind which seemed to blow into my face for the entire walk. 

Aptly, I was listening to today's album I have never heard before  - Little Feat's  "Feats Don't Fail Me Now," my favourite song on which turned-out to be Cold, Cold, Cold.

I've only studied one picture today (so far) due to a morning outbreak of DIY. The painting was the well-known Arnolfini Marriage (also known as the Arnolfini Portrait) by Jan Van Eyck in 1434. I saw this painting in the flesh, as it were, at the National Gallery in London a few years ago. 

It is a richly absorbing work, with plenty of mysteries.  Just one aspect amused me today. One theory (which has been disputed) is that the painting is a pictorial wedding certificate.  Unusually the artist signed it in a prominent position on the wall behind the couple, with the words "Jan van Eyck fuit hic" - which is Latin for "Jan van Eyck was here." The strange mirror below the signature seems to show two figures facing the couple. Was van Eyck a witness to a wedding?

In 15th century Europe you needed neither a priest nor witnesses to enter into a legal and Christian wedding.  A wedding could be performed in a private room - as here - and the sacraments were conducted by the couple.

This immediately made me think of a news item from just a few days ago when a church suggested that weddings should be limited to just five people, during the current pandemic.  Another ancient tradition revived?