Tuesday 17 December 1661
Up and to the Paynter’s to see how he went forward in our picture. So back again to dinner at home, and then was sent for to the Privy Seal, whither I was forced to go and stay so long and late that I was much vexed. At last we got all done, and then made haste to the office, where they were sat, and there we sat late, and so home to supper and to Selden, “Mare Clausum,” and so to bed.
6 Annotations
First Reading
Glyn • Link
"our picture" singular, not "our pictures" plural. I'm still not convinced that L&M were correct.
vicenzo • Link
re Payntor: he states that he was not happy with his visage then at a latter date he mentions the first layer of prep. being done for Eliza. It is a little confusing, I don't believe that that there is a copy of the two Pepis being in the same frame. So the 's' maybe lost in the original text.
Bullus Hutton • Link
whither I was forced to go and stay so long and late that I was much vexed..
OK, now here we have it, for all you workniks who think Sam's life is one long pub crawl, he DOES have to put the time in when duty calls, oftentimes at the convenience of his evidently uncaring superiors.
On this slow day when he starts by checking out the progress of his portrait and then strolls home for some lunch, he's called upon to attend some required bureaucratic duty at the Privy Seal (excellent Background description by Paul Brewster, imagine how Sam must have been sitting there just saying Get ON with it!) he has to go immediately by the office and explain in tedious detail every possible outcome of those political maunderings.
Finally he gets to go home and visit the Mare Clausum thing (this I find the most fascinating bit, the formulation of territorial water policy, good Background stuff here too, by Dutchmen it would appear!)but I'm not clear if Sam was just reading about it or discussing it with some chums he brought home.
In any event he finally put in a good workday, no wonder his diary entry was relatively brief!
Ruben • Link
I can imagine Samuel sitting in his studio and reading his Selden book Mare Nostrum by the light of 2 candles. On the table some annotations he made of his conclusions and a draft of his future work on the matter.(If he ever concludes).
Robert Gertz • Link
"and so home to supper and to Selden, 'Mare Clausum,' and so to bed.”
Where Elisabeth heard his points and drawing on her many sea travels in youth and Dad Alex’s experience in such matters laid the whole thing out for him… “Ma chere petite, they so much as look at you sideways without dipping ze flag, you open fire!”
Second Reading
Terry Foreman • Link
L&M transcribes "our pictures."