General notes on Image 9

• This is the image for October and the immigration reference is to the Netherlands.
• This image is thought to be linked to Verse 5 and a casque in Montreal, Canada.

Specific Observations

  Please record your notes about this image in the list below.  Use the letter/number grid to identify the point on the image that you're describing.  To keep things organized, 1) please start each observation with a letter/number combo (in bold), and 2) add new observations in the right place on the list to keep everything alphabetized.

• D5 - The jewel is an opal, the birth stone for October.
• D7 - The smooth outline of the hat changes to irregular bulges here.  The shape of the outline must be significant. 
• G6 - The irregular shape of the white collar on the right is a reasonable match for the St. Lawrence River where it flows through Montreal.
• H4 - The flower is a calendula, the birth flower for October.
• H7 - The square symbol above the dog obviously means something.  The two characters inside it appear to be runes.  The one on the left appears to be wunjô.  The one on the right appears to be a reflected version of laguz.
• I4 - The number "67" (or possibly "467") is hidden in the flower.  The "6" could also be a musical note. 1967 is the year that Montreal hosted the universal exposition.
• I7 - The "legeater" dog is the most distinctive feature of this illustration.  (See below for more info.)
• J6 & K6 - The hands appear to be forming some kind of symbol, possibly a church.

Other Notes:

• The painting has a definite resemblance the self-portraits painted by Rembrandt, including Self-Portrait with Beret and Turned-Up Collar.  Rembrandt was a Dutch artist, so the connection works with the immigration reference.
• The left half of the background is dark and the right half is light.  In addition the individual is smiling on the left side of the image and frowning on the right.  If you place a mirror along the line of the jewel and the nose, you can create either a smiling face on a dark background or a frowning face on a light background.  (The smiling, sharp-nosed fellow with the wide hat and high collar looks very much like Napoleon Bonaparte. Note: There is a restaurant in Montreal named Bonaparte, close to the St. Lawrence River.)

• The combination of a happy face (representing comedy) and a sad face (representing tragedy) is a traditional symbol for theater and acting.  This may be a reference to some nearby place where plays are performed.

Image Matches

The "legeater" design on the shirt matches the (bizarre) bases on the lampposts outside the George Stephen House in Montreal, Canada.  The house was built in 1883 for George Stephen, 1st Baron Mount Stephen.  The lamps are an Italian design and very similar lamps are still in use in Palermo, Sicily.  (See photos here, here, here, and here.)  However, no other examples of this design have yet been found in North America.   The George Stephen House is located at 1440 Drummond Street in Montreal.  Between 1926 and 2011, the house was used for the Mount Stephen Club.  The club closed in 2011 and the house is now being converted to a hotel that is expected to open in 2015.
The pattern on the man's neckline resembles the roof of Trafalgar School for Girls in Montreal.  The Trafalgar School is located at 3495 Simpson, four blocks away from Rue Drummond.
The steps and checkerboard may be a nod to the Sunlife Building that borders Dorchester Sq. in Montreal.

Latitude / Longitude Hints

Questions, questions, questions...

• Is there some significance to the way the hands are clasped with certain fingers raised?
• What is the meaning of the two runes in the square above the "legeater dog"?