October Arrives!

"Listen! The wind is rising
And the air is wild with leaves,
We have had our summer evenings,
now for October eves!"

Humbert Wolfe

Zodiacal Tympanum - Medieval Illumination - Book of Hours, Duc De Berry

c. 1412

October

This tympanum, prepared for the month of October, represents the gradual shift through the astrological year from the Zodiacal sign of Libra into the sign of Scorpio. The sign of Libra commences in the month of September and coincides with the Autumnal Equinox. Thus Libra, symbolized by the glyph of the scales, represents not only the desire for justice, balance and harmony, but also reflects the balance of the Equinox -- the equal division of

night and day, with the shortening hours of daylight progressing toward the "dark" sign of Scorpio - the end of long summer days, into the month of the third and final harvest, toward the time to begin to gather in and make preparations for the long, dark and sometimes dangerous months of winter
.

In Medieval Europe, the final plowing of harvested fields took place in October, in preparation for the planting of winter wheat and rye. The wooden frame tool shown in the three illuminations above is a harrow, and was pulled across planted fields by horse power or man power in order to break up remaining clods of earth and, most important to cover the seed and protect it from hungry birds. Villagers might post a man with a bow and arrow to dispatch birds while planting and harrowing was in progress and one of the most important jobs assigned to young children was to watch planted fields and to chase the birds away. In the October illumination, below, from the pages of the Book of Hours of The Duc De Berry, a scarecrow has been placed in the middle of a planted field, and there are rows of string with rags tied to them to discourage marauding birds. The scarecrow is holding what appears to be a bow, as if to convince the crows of his ability to dispatch them with a well placed arrow. Ravens or crows were the worst thieves, but doves owned by nobles were also very destructive; however, because the doves were under the protection of the nobility, it was not permitted to drive them away from planted fields.

Women have always played an essential role in agricultural economies. In the manuscript pages I've chosen for October, several present women in their role as workers and providers. In one of the illuminations above, a woman appears to be carrying a bag of grain seed as her male companion sows the seed. In my favorite of the three harrowing/sowing illuminations, a woman stands beside her husband in the field as he sows, and she is not idle! She is spinning wool using a distaff and a drop spindle to prepare thread for knitting and weaving. In the illumination directly below, a woman carries her distaff and spindle as she feeds a flock of chickens. Spinning was a nearly constant job for women, and the tools of their trade became so closely associated with their gender that in time, the female branch of a family became known as the "distaff side."

Our final illumination shows the October work of harvest (note the tiny Scorpio glyph at the top of the painting), the gathering in of the crops. A man and woman walking together bend low under the weight of the grain sacks, while a small dog frolics beside them.

Harvest Home, Harvest Home!
We've plowed, we've sowed
We've reaped, we've mowed
And brought home safe
Every load!