“Ymage del Mon”: the body and the world in the Catalan Atlas of Cresques Abraham, 1375

Abstract

This article aims to understand the spatial interrelationships present in the Catalan Atlas (1375). We will base this analysis on the worldview manifested in the source itself about the interdependent and mirrored relationship between micro and macrocosm, which consists of an amalgamated perspective from the transcultural and transtemporal interlacing. Firstly, we will briefly present the historical context of the production of the Catalan Atlas and the specific situation of its author, the Jew Cresques Abraham (1375). Later on, we will analyse the representation of the zodiacal man on the folio I in the source with the use of the iconological method and the theoretical support of Aby Warburg, Erwin Panofsky, and John Brian Harley. The zodiacal man is a recurring figure in medieval illuminations, however, there are specificities of this representation in the Catalan Atlas that differentiate it from others of its time. The gestures of the man’s feet, hands and eyes, as well as other features, such as body performance, beard and hair size, point to a profound presence of Iberian Jewish mystique built on cultural confluences over the centuries.