Memory Lane

When I was younger I loved these two paintings that my parents had hanging in the house.  One was the Irish Blessing, but the other one... well, that one was my favorite.

From Goulies and Ghosties and Long-Legged Beasties and things that go Bump in the Night:

Good Lord Deliver Us

You can see why it would be memorable to a young child, right?

Well, when my mother moved from a 3-bedroom house to a 1-bedroom apartment, she went ahead and let her children choose from the things she didn't have space to keep.  I got the paintings.  And I finally got around to getting them re-framed; they are in my living room right now.

 This morning, I looked up the artist.  Her name is Nancy Wilds, and she's from Aiken, SC.  This type of artwork is called Illuminated Manuscript.  Here's the info from her website:

Manuscript illumination is the artistic use of illustration and embellishment to enhance the appearance of plain text. Dating from ancient dynastic Egypt, and prevalent in great civilizations throughout history, illumination was considered a high art during the Middle Ages. Today, Nancy is one of very few artists practicing this enchanting art form.

Manuscript illumination typically includes a greatly enlarged and adorned initial letter, often containing figures, domestic and pastoral scenes, imaginary animals, and botanical motifs. The illustrations often extend down the margins and throughout the text.

Here's a close-up of some of the detail from the "Ghoulies" painting:

I see a skeleton, a gravestone, and ghoul.

What do you see?