The Fool Who Sells Wisdom Plate, 1900

Item — Box: CFC Tableware Box 10

Identifier: CFC2019.0259.1.2

Staff Only

Faience plate 8" in diameter showing three scenes depicting "Le Fou qui Vend la Sagesse.

Scope and Contents

From the Collection:

The Carlson Fable Collection is a gathering of primary fable materials at Reinert Alumni Memorial Library at Creighton University. It grew out of the personal collection of fable materials gathered by Rev. Gregory Carlson, S.J. and was given to the Creighton Libraries in 1996. There are more than 10,000 books and approximately 8,000 artifacts in the collection.

From plates to stamps, from cards to whiskey decanters, from toys to posters, you'll find just about anything you can imagine here. Please explore all that is to offer here in my fables Catalogue of Objects.

This is the largest online catalog of fable related objects on the internet. Many are from Aesop's Fables but you will find La Fontaine, Velazquez and Krylov also represented in this collection.

Dates

1900

Creator

Creil & Montereau (Organization)

Extent

1 Plates : Faience plate 8" in diameter showing three scenes depicting "Le Fou qui Vend la Sagesse." Numbered "3." A mark on the back seems to combine the letters "M" and "C" and says "déposé Fables Terre de Fer." ; 8" in diameter

Language of Materials

From the Collection: English

From the Collection: Latin

From the Collection: French

From the Collection: German

Additional Description

Abstract

The madman offers wisdom for a price, and gives those who pay a slap and a piece of thread two ells long. In this strange and wonderful story (La Fontaine IX 8), the first result is that we should not try to make sense of this act – or of anything else that fools say or do! The second result occurs in the story when one fellow, embarrassed by the blow and thread, goes to find a wise man, who tells him immediately that these things are symbols: "Stay this length of thread away from all madmen, or you'll get similar 'caresses.' You were not fooled; that madman does sell wisdom." The plate effectively presents both objects of trade, the slap and the thread. Monochrome characters in the panels at left and right are pondering the string and laughing, respectively.