The Book of Nobility, preserved at the Arquivo Nacional of Portugal, is a masterpiece of European heraldry that is remarkable for its extent and high artistic quality. The manuscript was written and illuminated by António Godinho between 1521 and 1541, working at the court of the Portuguese kings Manuel I, "the fortunate," and his successor John III, "the pious." It boasts a magnificent title page, five framed text pages, and 267 coats of arms in brilliant color, gold, and silver arranged four to a page.
Godinho (d. 1562) dedicated his work to "the most high and mighty" John III (1502-1557), King of Portugal. Citing ancient Greek and Roman authors in the prologue, he emphasizes that it is the exclusive right of kings to grant noble status and coats of arms to the worthy.
Monarchs of Europe
The manuscript's first four coats of arms, beginning with those of the mythical Prester John, are on a leaf now lost from the manuscript. The series continues with eleven coats of arms of Europe's contemporary sovereigns, including the Holy Roman Emperor and the Kings of Hungary, Poland, and Bohemia. The series ends with the arms of the King of Manikongo, a country that embraced a large area along the Atlantic coast of sub-Saharan Africa (fols. 6r-7r).
The Royal Family
The heraldry of the Portuguese nobility then begins with the repetition of the arms of King Manuel I (fol. 7v), followed by the arms of his consort, Maria; the prince and future John III; and John's siblings. The arms of the royal couple's sons are carefully distinguished by the coloration of the dragon that forms the crest of their helmets. The arms of the daughters, Isabel and Beatrice, show only their half (the right half) of a coat of arms that would share space with the arms of their future husbands (fol. 8v).
Clarity of Heraldic Expression
In the prologue, Godinho promises his work will correct past confusion and obfuscations. He carefully renders the animals and objects on the shields in a stylized fashion, or, as he put it, "larger than life," so there would be no ambiguity regarding their identification.
By contrast, he paints the elements above the shield illusionistically, with a strong sense of three-dimensionality, especially the twisting bicolor textiles of the mantling. This lends vivacity to the necessarily formulaic and stylized presentation of the elements on the shields.
Dogs, Bats, and Unicorns
The crests feature a range of animals, angels, people, and objects, including exotic feathers, kettles, swords, and towers. The natural and fantastic animals that appear most frequently are dragons, eagles, and lions, but there are also dogs, bats, and unicorns.
Magnificent Title Page
The manuscript's title page, with its gold text in a calligraphically flamboyant Gothic script, is a tour de force (fol. 1r). It features a wide range of delicately drawn ornaments, including baskets of flowers, birds, and a smiling snake. The five pages of the dedication to John III contrast sharply with the title page. Godinho wrote them in Humanistic Minuscule, and each page has a colorful painted frame composed of classicizing motifs (fols. 2r-4r).
Blank Pages and Substitutions
The last leaves of the manuscript have frames for the quadripartite divisions of the pages but remain blank. Probably in the nineteenth century, five leaves became estranged from the manuscript and were replaced with leaves reconstructing their content based on the original table of contents. The current modern binding features engraved metalwork furnishings dating from the sixteenth century.
We have 1 facsimile edition of the manuscript "Book of Nobility": Livro da Nobreza e Perfeiçam das Armas facsimile edition, published by Edições Inapa, 1987
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