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Alien ship? Comet? You decide

CFLarsen said:
Scenery is fairly easy to interpret:

Left guy: Helmet, but with naked torso. Carries a big sword.

Middle guy: Lies on ground, raises shield and left leg to protect himself against Right guy.

Right guy: Naked, ready to swing a big club on Middle guy.

There seems to be an extra person standing next to Right guy, holding a shield similar to Middle guy's.

This is most likely a depiction of a gladiator scene (Left and Right guys' attire hints at this).
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Agree, except for..
CFLarsen said:
As for the "alien ship"? Looks like a cloud to me. There are not that many details - if any.
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It looks a bit equine to me. The presence of a horse would fit right in with the "gladiator" scenario.
 
I'm surprised you haven't consulted the ultimate authority on things like this...

KOA? Albert? Bueller? Anyone? :D
 
Ed said:
oh yeah... best guess for a date is 1550-1575, maybe. Not earlier than say 1525, certinly not 15th century. Maybe as late as 1600, but doubtful. The met has something similar that they date to 1550.
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If it's a comet, it would most likely have appeared in the years right before it was made, so it was still fresh in people's memories.

You can check with The Bad As(s)tronomer if there was a comet visible around that time. If there was...well, your pet theory is somewhat strengthened... :)
 
CFLarsen said:


If it's a comet, it would most likely have appeared in the years right before it was made, so it was still fresh in people's memories.

You can check with The Bad As(s)tronomer if there was a comet visible around that time. If there was...well, your pet theory is somewhat strengthened... :)
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IF it is a representation of a comet. Unfortunately the person who's opinion in Art circles is high in this regard will not be back from vaca for a week.
 
Why would a comet be depicted just as decor in a battle scene ? Such an important thing would deserve something more. I tend more towards the cloud.
 
Gary W Kronk in his book "Comets a Descriptive Catalog" lists 13 long period (100+ years) and non-periodic comets for the years between 1500 and 1596. The short period comets require a bit more research. You might see if your library has a copy of his latest book "Cometography."

[Woo hoo I knew that book would come in handy some day.;)]
 
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