portraits of Tycho Brahe represent him as wearing round his neck a double gold chain, by which is suspended an elephant. It is not known on what occasion the king presented him with this mark of favour, but the source whence it came is evident from the king's initials, motto, or miniature, which on different portraits are shown on the elephant.[1] But in addition to this more ornamental than useful present, the king frequently bestowed others of a more practical nature on Tycho. Thus he sent in June 1581 an order to the treasury to pay the cost of a bell which had just been cast at Copenhagen for Tycho, and which was to be used at Hveen.[2] Perhaps it was this bell which was suspended in the cupola at Uraniborg. Again, in November 1583 the king ordered the treasury to hand over to Tycho "a good new ship or pilot-boat," with all necessary tackle, &c.[3]
From some letters of the king's it appears that Tycho entertained plans of some work of a geographical and historical character, for in September 1585 the king instructed his librarian to lend to Tycho Brahe "as many chartas cosmographicas or maps as are to be found in our library at our castle of Copenhagen, and which are of our kingdom, Denmark, or Norway, or any other of our dominions, for information in some undertaking of which he has told us."[4] A few weeks later the governor of Kronborg Castle was informed that whereas Tycho Brahe had stated his intention of publishing something about Danish kings, and had re-
- ↑ On the contemporary painting, which was destroyed in the burning of Frederiksborg Castle in 1859, (of which there is a copy in Friis's book), a small miniature is seen on the middle of the elephant. The engraving, which occurs in several of Tycho's printed works (by Geyn, dated 1586), shows on the elephant the letters F. S. (Fredericus Secundus), while the portrait of 1597 (copied in this book) has the miniature, and underneath the elephant the letters M. H. Z. G. A. (Meine Hoffnung zu Gott allein), the king's motto.
- ↑ Danske Magazin, ii. p. 217 (Weistritz, ii. p. 118).
- ↑ Ibid., ii. p. 219 (Weistritz, ii. p. 121).
- ↑ Werlauff, Historiske Efterretninger om det Store Kongelige Bibliothek. Copenhagen, 1844, p. 9.
