Published nearly half a millennia ago in 1585, Jode's Thesaurus is arguably the first true "picture Bible" and in its first state consists of 60 sets of engravings, each depicting a different story from the Bible through a series of images. Copies of any editions of the 1585 Jode in any condition are extremely rare, with around 30 known copies, but at least some are missing at least some of the engravings and only a smaller subset are of the original first state. The copy we are examining is perhaps one of the only copies entirely in the first state, containing both the 1579 preface and introductory poem, all of the title cards and even the additional Archangels series not listed on the table of contents. The title cards, which are missing from many copies, are especially valuable in understanding the Jode in that they list the original artist each series was by or inspired by. What would it look like to use a cellphone to photograph both tables of contents and the 61 title cards and upload them all to Gemini 3.1 Pro, with instructions to transcribe, translate, parse the artist and plate count information and merge the tables of contents and title cards together to create a single master Excel spreadsheet of all this information? Gemini is able to do all of this in just a few seconds, demonstrating the transformative potential of frontier models to help researchers transcribe, translate, extract and merge indexing information from historical works.
The tables of contents can be seen below. Both are engraved in Latin in two very different layouts, one with an elaborate print typeface with embellishments, in a tabular layout with floral borders, and the other in italics and in list format. We asked Gemini to extract both of these, formatted as tables and then to translate the titles into English and extract the plate counts. Note how we didn't have to use separate instructions for the two different tables of contents, despite their very different layouts – Gemini just figured things out on its own.
Make this into a nice formatted table. Make a table of the Latin entries below and for each provide its English translation in the second column.
The title cards, which are missing from many copies, are especially valuable in understanding the Jode in that they list the original artist each series was by or inspired by. To extract these, we uploaded all 61 title cards into a single Gemini session (they are numbered in the order they appear in the book) and asked Gemini to transcribe and translate each and then extract the artist and plate count information and make a table of it all:
Make a table of all of these IN THE ORDER THEY APPEAR. The first column should be the original Latin text. The second should be the English translation. The third column should be the artist name (if specified - leave blank otherwise). The fourth column should be the number of folios listed (leave blank if not specified). Make this into a giant table.
The majority of the title cards look like the following, with a block of italic text in Latin surrounded by an elaborately decorative cartouche:
There are also three very different title cards, seen below. Incredibly, for the first image, given that Gemini was told to treat each image as a title card, instead of extracting all of the text on the page, it correctly identifies the center plate text and cartouche as the "title card" on this page and extracts only the text "ICONES REVELATIONVM NVM S IOHS EVANGELISTAE in Pathmo G. de Iode".
The final extracted tables of contents, complete with English translations and the merged title card information can be seen below:
NEW TESTAMENT
| 1 | Creatio mundi. | The Creation of the world. | 8 | Historia Creationis mundi Crispiano vanden broeck inuentore folijs . 8 . | History of the Creation of the world, Crispian van den Broeck inventor | Crispiano vanden broeck | 8 |
| 2 | Fratricidium Caini. | The fratricide of Cain. (Cain murdering Abel) | 3 | Historia Caini et Abelis per M. Michaelem Coccium : 3 fol : | History of Cain and Abel by M. Michael Coxie | M. Michaelem Coccium | 3 |
| 3 | Diluuium. | The Flood. (The Deluge) | 3 | Historia Noe per Iohannem Bol : 3 . fol : | History of Noah by Johannes Bol | Iohannem Bol | 3 |
| 4 | Turris Babilonica. | The Tower of Babel. | 3 | Historia Turris Babylonicae per Iohannem Snellincx . 3 . fol : | History of the Tower of Babylon by Johannes Snellincx | Iohannem Snellincx | 3 |
| 5 | Abraham. | Abraham. | 6 | Historia Abrahami per Martinum de Vos fol 6 | History of Abraham by Martin de Vos | Martinum de Vos | 6 |
| 6 | Lothus. | Lot. | 4 | Historia Loth per Franciscum Menton : inuentore , in quatuor fol : | History of Lot, Franciscus Menton inventor | Franciscum Menton | 4 |
| 7 | Iacob et Esau. | Jacob and Esau. | 4 | Historia Iacobi et Esau : per Martinum de Vos : 4 fol : | History of Jacob and Esau by Martin de Vos | Martinum de Vos | 4 |
| 8 | Dina filia Iacob. | Dinah, daughter of Jacob. | 4 | Historia Dinae Iacobi filiae Martino Heymskerck inuentore in quatuor fol : | History of Dinah, daughter of Jacob, Martin Heemskerck inventor | Martino Heymskerck | 4 |
| 9 | Duodecim Patriarchae. | The Twelve Patriarchs. | 6 | Historia duodecim patriarcharum per Crispinianum vanden broeck folijs . 6 . | History of the twelve patriarchs by Crispinian van den Broeck | Crispinianum vanden broeck | 6 |
| 10 | Ioseph Somniator. | Joseph the Dreamer. | 7 | Historia Iosephi somniatoris : per M. Michaelem fol : | History of Joseph the dreamer by M. Michael | M. Michaelem | |
| 11 | Moises & Pharao. | Moses and Pharaoh. | 8 | Historia plagarum in Aegypto . inuentore Martino a Cleef . 8 . folijs . | History of the plagues in Egypt, inventor Martin van Cleve | Martino a Cleef | 8 |
| 12 | Desertum. | The Desert. (The Wilderness) | 6 | Historia Moysis in deserto per Crispinianum vanden broeck sex fol : | History of Moses in the desert by Crispinian van den Broeck | Crispinianum vanden broeck | 6 |
| 13 | Balaam. | Balaam. | 4 | Historia Balaami prophetae per Mar : de Vos fo : 4 . | History of Balaam the prophet by Mar. de Vos | Mar: de Vos | 4 |
| 14 | Iosue. | Joshua. | 10 | Historia Iosuae per Gerardum a Groeninghen decem folijs . | History of Joshua by Gerard van Groeningen | Gerardum a Groeninghen | 10 |
| 15 | Duodecim Iudices Isra | The Twelve Judges of Israel. (Isra is an abbreviation) | 6 | Icones 12 Iudicum Israel per Iohanne Snellinck fol : 6 . | Icons of the 12 Judges of Israel by Johannes Snellinck | Iohanne Snellinck | 6 |
| 16 | Gedeon. | Gideon. | 4 | Historia Gedeonis per Martinum de Vos . fol . 4 . | History of Gideon by Martin de Vos | Martinum de Vos | 4 |
| 17 | Iepthe. | Jephthah. | 4 | Historia Ieptes : Ioanne Bol inuentore in quatuor fol : | History of Jephthah, Johannes Bol inventor | Ioanne Bol | 4 |
| 18 | Samson. | Samson. | 3 | Historia Sampsonis Iohanne Snellinck folijs | History of Samson, Johannes Snellinck | Iohanne Snellinck | |
| 19 | Ruth et boos. | Ruth and Boaz. | 4 | Historia Ruth per Adrianum de Werdt in quatuor fol | History of Ruth by Adrian de Weerdt | Adrianum de Werdt | 4 |
| 20 | Dauid et Saul. | David and Saul. | 4 | Historia Dauidis et Saulis : Ambrosio ab Herentaels Inuetore fol : 4 . | History of David and Saul, Ambrosius of Herentals inventor | Ambrosio ab Herentaels | 4 |
| 21 | Dauid & Abigael. | David and Abigail. | 4 | Historia Dauidis et Abigael per Marti : de Vos . fol . 4 . | History of David and Abigail by Martin de Vos | Marti: de Vos | 4 |
| 22 | Dauid & Bersabea. | David and Bathsheba. | 4 | Historia Bersabee Martino a Cleef inuentore in quatuor fol : | History of Bathsheba, Martin van Cleve inventor | Martino a Cleef | 4 |
| 23 | Dauid & Abselon. | David and Absalom. | 4 | Historia Dauidis et Absalon per Mar : de Vos fol . 4 . | History of David and Absalom by Mar. de Vos | Mar: de Vos | 4 |
| 24 | Salomon. | Solomon. | 4 | Historia Salomonis regis per Iohannem Snellincx in quatuor fol : | History of King Solomon by Johannes Snellincx | Iohannem Snellincx | 4 |
| 25 | Roboam & Ieroboam. | Rehoboam and Jeroboam. | 6 | Historia Roboam et Ieroboam per Ambrosium ab Herentaels . 6 . fol : | History of Rehoboam and Jeroboam by Ambrosius of Herentals | Ambrosium ab Herentaels | 6 |
| 26 | Helias & Sacer:Baal. | Elijah and the Priests of Baal. (Sacer: is an abbreviation for Sacerdotes) | 4 | Historia Heliae et sacerdotum Balaami per Ioanne Snellinx . 4 . fo : | History of Elijah and the priests of Baal by Johannes Snellinx | Ioanne Snellinx | 4 |
| 27 | Helias & Heliseus. | Elijah and Elisha. | 4 | Historia Heliae et Helisei Petro vander Borcht inuentore . 4 . fol : | History of Elijah and Elisha, Pieter van der Borcht inventor | Petro vander Borcht | 4 |
| 28 | Regina Athalia. | Queen Athaliah. | 4 | Historia Ioae per Martinum Heymskercke in quatuor fol . | History of Joash by Martin Heemskerck | Martinum Heymskercke | 4 |
| 29 | Sanacharib. | Sennacherib. | 4 | Historia Sennacharib per Martinum de Vos . fol . 4 . | History of Sennacherib by Martin de Vos | Martinum de Vos | 4 |
| 30 | Reges Persarum. | The Kings of the Persians. | 10 | Series Regum Persarum penes quos fuit rerum potestas in Secunda Monarchia , cuius Imperium a Cyro Rege excelentissimo initium cepit. eiusque posteritate administratum Sub hac Monarchia maxima Mundi regna iterum coalescere ceperunt primumque a Graecis cognita nam quaecuque apud Graecos praeclare et Magnifice gesta sunt, Sub huius Monarchie temporibus acciderunt. Scriptores a quibus res gestae horum regum sunt annotatae, Sunt Herodotus , Iustinus , Xenophon , et Thucydides . Gerard de Iode. | Series of the Kings of the Persians in whose hands was the power in the Second Monarchy, whose Empire took its beginning from the most excellent King Cyrus, and was administered by his posterity. Under this Monarchy the greatest kingdoms of the world began to coalesce again, and were first known by the Greeks, for whatever things were done excellently and magnificently among the Greeks, happened under the times of this Monarchy. The writers by whom the deeds of these kings are recorded are Herodotus, Justin, Xenophon, and Thucydides. Gerard de Jode. | Gerard de Iode | |
| 31 | Hester. | Esther. | 4 | Historia Assuery per Iohannem Snellincx in quatuor fol : | History of Ahasuerus by Johannes Snellincx | Iohannem Snellincx | 4 |
| 32 | Iob. | Job. | 4 | Historia Iobi Iohanne Snellinck Inuetore fol : 4 . | History of Job, Johannes Snellinck inventor | Iohanne Snellinck | 4 |
| 33 | Esdre. | Ezra. | 4 | Esdre per Marti : de Vos fol : 4 | Ezra by Martin de Vos | Marti: de Vos | 4 |
| 34 | Tobias. | Tobit. (or Tobias) | 6 | Historia Tobiae Martinum de Vos inuentore folijs . 6 . | History of Tobit, Martin de Vos inventor | Martinum de Vos | 6 |
| 35 | Holofernes & Iudit | Holofernes and Judith. | 4 | Historia Holofernes . per Iohannem Snellincx . in quatuor fol . | History of Holofernes by Johannes Snellincx | Iohannem Snellincx | 4 |
| 36 | Prophetae. | The Prophets. | 4 | Historia duodecim prophetarum per Iohannem Snellincx . 4 . fol : | History of the twelve prophets by Johannes Snellincx | Iohannem Snellincx | 4 |
| 37 | Susanna. | Susanna. | 4 | Historia Susannae Egidio Quinget inuentore , in quatuor fol | History of Susanna, Egidius Quinget (Gillis Coignet) inventor | Egidio Quinget | 4 |
| 38 | Daniel. | Daniel. | 6 | Historia Danielis per Iohannem Vriese sex folijs . | History of Daniel by Johannes (Vredeman de) Vries | Iohannem Vriese | 6 |
| 39 | Reges Iudae. | The Kings of Judah. | 8 | Reges populi Iudaici Iohanne Snellinck fol : 8 . | Kings of the Jewish people, Johannes Snellinck | Iohanne Snellinck | 8 |
| 40 | Iudas Machabeus | Judas Maccabeus. | 8 | Historia Iudae Machabei Gerardo a Gruningen autore fol : 8 . | History of Judas Maccabeus, Gerard van Groeningen author | Gerardo a Gruningen | 8 |
| 41 | Ionae prophete. | The Prophet Jonah. | 4 | Historia Ionae prophetae per Mar : de Vos . fo . 4 . | History of Jonah the prophet by Mar. de Vos | Mar: de Vos | 4 |
| [NOT IN TABLE OF CONTENTS] | De nouem Angelis eorumque officijs per Mar : de Vos . fo . 4 . | Of the nine Angels and their offices by Mar. de Vos | Mar: de Vos | 4 |
OLD TESTAMENT
| Title | Translation | Plates | Title Card | Title Card Translation | Artist | Plates |
| De. Quatuor Euangelistos | On the Four Evangelists. | fo. 4 | Quatuor Euangelistae fracisco floro inuetore folys . 4 . | The Four Evangelists, Frans Floris inventor | fracisco floro | 4 |
| De. Natiuite Christi | On the Nativity (Birth) of Christ. | fo. 9 | Historia natiuitatis Christi cu circumstatys suis . 9 . folys | History of the nativity of Christ with its circumstances | 9 | |
| De. Rebus gestis in tẽplo Sacharia Symione Circumcisione et puero Jesu inter doctores | On the events in the temple: Zechariah, Simeon, the Circumcision, and the boy Jesus among the teachers. | fo. 4 | De zacharia Symione Circuncione et puero Iesu inter doctores fo : 4 . | Concerning Zechariah, Simeon, the Circumcision, and the boy Jesus among the doctors | 4 | |
| De. Johãne baptista Christo in deserto et vocatione filiorũ zebedei | On John the Baptist, Christ in the desert, and the calling of the sons of Zebedee. | fo. 4 | De Iohanne Baptista , Domini praecursore Christo in deserto et vocatione filioru Zebedei | Concerning John the Baptist, the forerunner of the Lord, Christ in the desert, and the calling of the sons of Zebedee | ||
| De. Semine malo | On the Bad Seed. (The Parable of the Weeds/Tares) | fo. 4 | Parabola Christi in naui seminante semen suu per Gerardu a Groeninghen folys . 4 | Parable of Christ in the ship sowing his seed by Gerard van Groeningen | Gerardu a Groeninghen | 4 |
| De. Miraculis Christi | On the Miracles of Christ. | fo. 12 | Duodecim Christi miracula per Gerardum a Groenighe folys . 12 . | Twelve miracles of Christ by Gerard van Groeningen | Gerardum a Groenighe | 12 |
| De. seruo bono et malo | On the Good and Bad Servant. | fo. 6 | Parabola de homine peregre abituro per Gerardu a Groninghe foly . 6 | Parable of the man going on a journey by Gerard van Groeningen | Gerardu a Groninghe | 6 |
| De Duodecĩ parabolis Christi | On the Twelve Parables of Christ. | fo. 12 | Duodecim parabolae per Ambrosiu franck . folys . 12 . | Twelve parables by Ambrosius Francken | Ambrosiu franck | 12 |
| De. Debitore | On the Debtor. (The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant) | fo. 4 | Parabola de domino seruo suo debitum remittente folys quatuor | Parable of the lord forgiving his servant's debt | 4 | |
| De Filio prodigo | On the Prodigal Son. | fo. 4 | Parabola de filio prodego Crispiano vanden broeck inuetore folys . 4 . | Parable of the prodigal son, Crispian van den Broeck inventor | Crispiano vanden broeck | 4 |
| De. Operibus Christi in mõte Tabor Nicodemi Pastore bono puerorũ vocatione et ingressu Christi in Hierusalem | On the works of Christ on Mount Tabor, Nicodemus, the Good Shepherd, the calling of the children, and the entry of Christ into Jerusalem. | fo. 5 | De transfiguratioe dni in mote , Nicodemo pastore bono, et pueroru vocatione Cum regali ingressu Christi in Hierusalem fo : 5 . | Concerning the transfiguration of the Lord on the mountain, Nicodemus, the good shepherd, and the calling of the children. With the royal entry of Christ into Jerusalem | 5 | |
| De. Conuersis peccatoribus | On Converted Sinners. | fo. 6 | Sex peccatores conuersi per Ambrosiu franck folys 6 . | Six converted sinners by Ambrosius Francken | Ambrosiu franck | 6 |
| De. Diuersis rebus in tẽplo gestis | On various things done in the temple. | fo. 9 | Nouem diuersae hystoriae atq[ue] miracula inteplo a Christo edita . fo : 9 . | Nine different histories and miracles performed by Christ in the temple | 9 | |
| De. Operibus misericordiæ | On the Works of Mercy. | fo. 8 | Septem opera misericordiae figuris expressa per Gerardu a Groenighen fo . 8 | The seven works of mercy expressed in figures by Gerard van Groeningen | Gerardu a Groenighen | 8 |
| De. Passione Domini | On the Passion of the Lord. | fo. 16 | MNIMATA DOMINICAE PASSIONIS HISTORIAM NECISQVE NOSTRAE MORTEM COMPLEXA. SICVT MOYSES EXALTAVIT SERPENTEM IN DESERTO, ITA EXALTARI OPORTET FILIVM HOMINIS: VT OMNIS QVI CREDIT IN IPSVM NON PEREAT, SED HABEAT VITAM AETERNAM. Math: 12. GENERATIO MALA ET ADVLTERA SIGNVM QVAERIT: ET SIGNVM NON DABITVR EI, NISI SIGNVM IONAE PROPHETAE: SICVT ENIM FVIT IONAS IN VENTRE CETI TRIBVS DIEBVS ET TRIBVS NOCTIBVS: SIC ERIT FILIVS HOMINIS IN CORDE TERRAE TRIBVS DIEBVS ET TRIBVS NOCTIBVS. IOAN. 3. Antvuerpiae excudeb: Gerardus de Iode. 1572 | Memorials embracing the history of the Lord's passion and the death of our slaying. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up: that everyone who believes in him may not perish, but may have eternal life. Matt: 12. An evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign: and a sign will not be given to it, except the sign of Jonah the prophet: for as Jonah was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights: so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights. John 3. Antwerp, published by Gerard de Jode, 1572. | Gerardus de Iode | |
| De. Testimonio resurrectionis Christi | On the Testimony of the Resurrection of Christ. | fo. 6 | Testimonia Resurrectionis Domini nostri Iesu Christi Cum missione S. Spiritus . folys 6 . | Testimonies of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, with the sending of the Holy Spirit | 6 | |
| De. 12 Apostolis | On the 12 Apostles. | fo. 5 | Duodecim Apostoli cum effigie Saluatoris . fol . 5 . | The Twelve Apostles with the effigy of the Savior | 5 | |
| De. Apocalipso seu reuelatione Iohanĩs | On the Apocalypse or Revelation of John. | fo. 6 | ICONES REVELATIONVM NVM S IOHS EVANGELISTAE in Pathmo G. de Iode | Icons of the Revelations of St. John the Evangelist in Patmos. G. de Jode | G. de Iode | |
| De. Quatuor doctoribus Ecclesiæ. | On the Four Doctors of the Church. | fo. 4 | Icones patrum doctorumue ecclesiae quatuor per Gerardu a Groeninghen fo 4 | Icons of the four fathers or doctors of the church by Gerard van Groeningen | Gerardu a Groeninghen | |