The Game of Chess

...mouth and spoke: "I wonder whether you are truly sorry for what you have lost in the body—that which you have in common with the beasts—when you consider what you have in the soul, which you have in common with the angels." This reflects the medieval "Great Chain of Being," where humans occupy a middle ground between animals (physicality) and angels (pure intellect). And therefore, he who was the inventor of this game—when the fear of death pressed upon him, he forgot all sensory things and gave himself over inwardly to the mind and found this game, which is full of countless images and likenesses original: "geleichnüsz." These are allegories or metaphors where the chess pieces represent different social classes. that one finds within it.

The King

The King takes his form after a living king, for he shall sit in his palace clothed in purple. original: "purpur." In the Middle Ages, purple dye was extremely expensive and legally reserved for royalty and high-ranking clergy. This signifies that

A rectangular illumination with a red border. It depicts a king seated on a wooden throne against a blue background with two green arched decorative elements. The king wears a crown, a white tunic with golden patterns, and a white mantle lined with grey fur. He holds a golden scepter topped with a fleur-de-lis in his right hand and a golden globus cruciger in his left hand. His pose is frontal, seated with legs slightly apart, wearing white stockings and pinkish-red shoes.

he shall be
beautified with
virtues and
with grace;
with these, the
king’s mind
and will shall
be adorned.
In these things
he shall shine
before other
people, just
as he shines
outwardly in
his garment.
He shall have
a crown upon The text likely continues on the next page to describe the crown and the king's other regalia.