The term Labours of the Months refers to cycles in Medieval and early Renaissance art depicting in twelve scenes the rural activities that commonly took place in the months of the year. They are often linked to the signs of the Zodiac, and are seen as humankind's response to God's ordering of the Universe.
The Labours of the Months are frequently found as part of large sculptural schemes on churches, and in illuminated manuscripts, especially in the calendars of late medieval Books of Hours. The manuscripts are important for the development of landscape painting, containing most of the first painting where this was given prominence. The most famous cycle is that painted in the early 15th century by the Limbourg brothers in Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry. In the early 16th century, long after the genre was established, the miniaturist Simon Bening produced cycles which link the Limbourgs with the landscape paintings of Pieter Bruegel the Elder.
The contents of cycles varied with date, location, and the purpose of the work. The Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry (illustrated right) was designed for the personal use of John, Duke of Berry (d. 1416), French prince and magnate, and was unusually large, allowing all the typical elements to be used in many months. It combines astrological and calendar information at the top, with a combination of the agricultural life of the peasant, the life of the courtiers, and illustrations of the Duke's many castles in the background of several scenes.
A typical simple scheme was:[1]
However, there could be many other variations than the above, especially in major wine-growing areas, where more wine related scenes were included. In manuscript cycles, hunting scenes may appear at most times of the year. Italian cycles often advance the agricultural scenes a month earlier than the ones from the Low Countries or England. A few cycles show (usually for April or May) scenes including medieval gardens. The impact of the onset of the Little Ice Age has been detected in differences between early and late examples.
Most sculptured cycles in Europe, especially when compressed into the archivolt of a portal, consist of an astrological symbol beside, above or incorporated in a sculpture or relief illustrating a monthly labour.
A few sculpted examples of the many surviving are:
The Labours of the months often occur in those rose windows that are dedicated to the Creation, the circular nature of the window suiting the cyclic theme. In these windows, the months are part of a complex iconographical scheme. Other windows have the Labours of the Months specifically as their subject matter.
Contains zodiac signs and labors of the month.