Original leaf from a medieval manuscript Book of Hours. 14 lines of text are written in Latin, on animal vellum. (155 x 115 mm - 6.2 x 4.6")
Ruled in red with dark brown ink, in fine gothic script, with rubrics (headings) in red. Eleven illuminated one-line initials in burnished gold on blue and mauve ground with white tracery; seven illuminated line extenders in the same gold & colors – one containing a fish (early symbol of Christ).
France (Amiens?) c. 1240 – Very early (during the first period of transition from Psalters and Psalter-hours).
The one-line illuminated “C” continues Psalm 117 (King James 118) 21-29: “Confitebor…” (I will give glory to thee because thou has heard me: and art become my salvation…I will praise thee, because thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation. O praise ye the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy endureth forever).
Books of Hours are personal prayerbooks of a devout and status-conscious society and are not only works of art, but cultural documents of their time. They reveal a unique combination of sacred and secular imagery - made of the finest materials, by the best craftsmen, for a small audience that could both appreciate and afford them.
Presented in an archival 14x11'' mat
