A tournanent with quaestio amorosa in Don Polismán de Nápoles by Jerónimo de Contreras

Abstract

Noble amusements are a prominent component in chivalric books. Its study constitutes a suggestive and complex phenomenon. Multiple disciplines, from poetry to heraldry, converged in ephemeral pastimes that would have died in the memory of those present had it not been for the chronicles that recorded them and for the echoes they left in works of fiction, especially chivalric ones. Their contacts with paratheatrical performances also make them episodes of great literary interest. In the following pages we offer the study of a tournament in Don Polismán de Nápoles by Jerónimo de Contreras, revealing its conformity to the common structure in this type of demonstration (presentation of the challenge, entry with lavish inventions, awards ceremony), and highlighting the artistic implications of the elements displayed.