These grisaille panels are part of a set of eight from a window in one of three chapels at the Norman residence of the French monarchs. They represent a mid-century transitional stage in royal French ateliers. The conventionalized acanthus buds are a continuation of earlier tastes, while the ivy leaves, delineated with hair-thin veins, reflect the newer, naturalizing tendencies. The castles in the border are devices of the kingdom of Castile and indicate royal patronage, probably that of Louis IX (1226-1272), who claimed the right to the Spanish throne through his mother, Blanche of Castile.
See 69.236.2–.9.