Query re: marginalia

Yesterday, I went to the exhibit, Kings, Queens, and Courtiers: Art in Early Renaissance France at the Art Institute (well worth a visit, by the way!). There was an illumination by Jean Fouquet depicting the Battle of the Romans and Carthanginians. In the margin was the image of a man, perhaps a jester, holding an animal with its tail in or near his mouth. He appeared to be almost playing it like an instrument. The animal looked like a cat or an ermine, rather hard to tell, but I'm thinking ermine because the tail is clearly dark and the body white . Here's a reproduction of the entire thing. The marginalia I'm talking about is in the lower left-hand corner. I couldn't find a better image online.

Does anyone have any idea what this might signify? I found a similar image here, though it appears to be a different animal.

The image represents The fool of Strutt.

Thanks!

Is there some particular significance to his behavior, and do we know of any reason why someone would stick him into the margin of a battle scene (other than the illuminator's private amusement)? And what, if anything, do we know about the Fool of Strutt? I can find no references to him other than in relation to that second image.

We know that he was a Fool (i.e. a jester, Congressman ior cat owner).

Manuscript painters often followed theor patrons' wishes, though some used the same basic themes in their Inhabited Borders, as with the rabbits of The Master Of Jean Rolin, the Monkey Master's monkeys, or the stylised waterbirds and angels of the Master of Zweder van Culemborg (whose borders, as you probably know, were actually painted by The Master of the Brno Speculum).

he was a Fool (i.e. a jester, Congressman or cat owner)

Hey! As a cat owner, I resemble that remark!

;-)

But you appear to have only one.

;)

> 6

:-(

I had two. But one (the one in my lap in my profile pic) died a couple of weeks ago. This is the other one, who inspired my screen name:

My condolences on your loss of Marissa.

:(