Armillary Sphere in the Ideology of the Late Middle Ages and Early Modern Times

Abstract

The armillary sphere is one of the most famous badges. The opinion that this image of a navigation device visualizes Portugal is an anachronism. In Europe the armillary sphere was used not only in Portugal. Models of the celestial structure based on the concept of the sphericity of the universe have a long tradition. In the 15th — 16th centuries the armillary sphere served as a designation of the highest imperial ambitions and appeared in various contexts related to messianism and the interpretation of biblical prophecy. The armillary sphere is a conceptual model of the cosmos structure, its physical, spiritual, and political sides. By the end of the 15th century the armillary sphere became a stable representation of the universe — an image full of Christian meaning, which had a pan-European distribution and pan-European significance. The image of the sphere is a visualization of the highest European values of that time, an example of which is the use of it by Elizabeth I and her entourage.