On some paintings of Odonata from the Late Middle Ages (14th and 15th centuries)

Painted representations of Odonata from the 14lh and 15lh centuries, found in the masterpieces cited below, are described and commented on: “ Belleville Breviary”, Paris (J. Pucelle, ca 1323-1326); ‘ Allegory of Good Government”, , Siena (A. Lorenzetti, ca 1338-1340); “ The Two Lovers”, Southern Germany (anonymous, ca 1470) and “Hastings Hours”, Flandres (anonymous, ca 1480). The symbolic meaning of the Odonata representation in each work seems to be different. The damselfly painted in the “ Belleville Breviary”, probably based on a male Calopteryx specimen, represents the oldest known European representation of Odonata yet.