Talk:Balthasar Behem Codex

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entries on individual codices that refer to pictures are useless until wikipedia can display pictures. What is this entry supposed to be about? Is the Behem Codex going to be used to prove something later? Is it important for something OTHER than images of daily life that we can't see? The initial entry, of course, was saying something about the ethnic origin of Balthasar Behem (assuming that because his name means Bohemian that he was from Bohemia, as opposed to some male relative). MichaelTinkler

Having followed up this odd entry (search, discover that HJ had referred to it on Krakow and the U of K page, click on the Jagiellonian Univ., search their page) I discover that the Balthasar Behem Codex is in Latin, German, and Polish! Yes, Polish! Who would have known, given her entry? See the link: [1]. MichaelTinkler


Looking at the page one can make out the following words of the codex at the university, see written below"

"On virtual exibition by the Jagiellonian University of Krakow, a sample page of the original 1505 codex shows an illustration depicting bakers, titled : 46 Pistores . 'Dis ist der briff und gesetze der becker zu Crakow...der Stad Crakow bekenne offenthun--beschlossen haben wy dy ..hanttwergks der becker ..satzungen.. "

This code book of the city and guilds of Krakow includes 27 miniatures,which illustrate the daily life of craftsmen and merchants.It is a legal announcement in German Language documenting their formation of the backer's guild and states the charters and statutes."

Nowhere does it show any Polish or Latin on this particular page stating the baker's guild announcement.

Unfortunately some people at wikipedia remove large parts of wikipedia entries , only to find the information missing later.

Of course the current library exibit in Poland would also show Polish translation. user:H.J.


I continued the entry to make it clear that these 'activities' are not necessarily accurate and realistic portrayals of everyday life in late 15th early 16th century Krakow, but traditional ideas of what certain trades should do. Images are often not what they seem. If they were, there'd be no reason for professionals and amateurs could say whatever they liked about them. Most of the work has been done on images out of Paris, but the general concept is applicable to any book showing the activities of the trades from late medieval or early renaissance Europe. MichaelTinkler

Very nice new version, MCT! JHK

Information was removed because it had no earthly purpose. Yes, a link to a website shows ONE page of the book, and that page happens to be in German. The Polish is NOT a translation -- the book itself is actually written in three languages -- not uncommon for the time. There was absolutely no point to the article as written, except, perhaps, to link someone from Bohemia to Poland -- also not surprising in the year 1505. Moreover, as the article stated, a codex is not a "code book" -- it is simply a book of the "turn the pages" type -- in contrast to a scroll. The article is now pared down to accurate, if not particularly helpful, information, as opposed to the utter crap to which we are all sadly accustomed from Ms. user:H.J.. JHK