Labours of the Months (August - harvest)
1450-1475
England
from Cassiobury Park, Hertfordshire

This roundel is one of six acquired by the museum in 1923 (Museum nos.C.123-128-1923). It was originally from a set of 12 roundels depicting the �Labours of the Months�. The museum purchased them from the sale of the contents of Cassiobury Park in Hertfordshire. They had probably been installed in the windows of the house when it was remodelled in the early years of the 19th century. We do not know where they were located before that date.

The depiction of the months and occupations associated with them appear early in the Medieval period on church facades and interiors. They also appear in illuminated manuscripts and start to become more common in stained glass in the 14th and, especially, the 15th centuries.

The occupations depicted in these �Labours of the Months� are mostly agricultural and are thus intimately associated with the landed class and their agricultural labourers. They appear in both religious and secular settings.

�Labours of the Months� are found all throughout Europe and the occupations depicted are standard but do vary in accordance with the local climate. Harvesting, for instance, began earlier in the year in Southern Europe. Feasting and drinking scenes, mostly aristocratic in form, appear in either December or January in all European countries. These months are traditionally associated with major festivals in the Church year and the consumption of large quantities of meat. Much livestock was killed at this time of year to provide food over the winter months.

Some of the �Labours of the Months� stained glass roundels believed to have been painted in England share the same imagery. This imagery must have come from a common source, most likely from a series of woodblock engravings which may have circulated between the glazing workshops.

In the centre of this roundel, a woman bends over and cuts grain with a sickle. Behind her a man binds together some grain into a sheath and another sheath stands in the background. A scroll at the top bears the word �Augustus�, indicating that this activity is taking place in the month of August. The grains that were grown in the medieval period were wheat, barley, rye and oat. By this date it was common agricultural practice to plant two crops of grain a year. One was sown in the autumn months and harvested in early summer (�winter wheat�) and another crop with a shorter growing season was sown in the spring and harvested in late summer (�spring wheat�). The harvest of the �spring wheat� is the activity taking place in this roundel.

The paintwork on this roundel is very detailed and highly skilled, indicating the work of a prominent glass-painting workshop. The techniques employed include �stickwork� which makes use of a stylus to scrape away areas of paint to produce highlights, as seen in the woman�s apron. Smear shading and stipple-shading are used to create depth in the background.