Original leaf from a medieval manuscript Book of Hours. 15 lines of red-ruled Latin text, in dark brown ink, on animal vellum. (197 x 138mm)
One three-line and two two-line illuminated initials alternating in blue & red with delicate white penwork & an interior floral design in red, blue & orange on a burnished gold ground - two extend into margin with a rinceaux floral motive in burnished gold & blue.
Text is surrounded on 3 sides with an elegant rinceaux panel border in a delicate floral motif with ivy leaves in red, blue, green, orange & burnished gold, & an illuminated bar extends beyond the length of the text in red, blue & burnished gold. Northern France (Paris), c. 1420-40.
The three-line illuminated "I" begins ''Inclina...'' (Incline Thine ear, O Lord, unto our prayers, wherein we humbly pray Thee to show Thy mercy upon the soul of Thy servant, whom Thou hast commanded to pass out of this world, that Thou wouldst place him in the region of peace and light, and bid him be a partaker with Thy Saints).
The two-line illuminated ''D'' begins: ''Deus...'' (O God the creator, and redeemer of all the faithful, give unto the souls of thy servants men, and women remission of all their sins: that through Godly supplications they may obtain the pardon which they have always wished for. Who livest and reignest world without end.).
Books of Hours are personal prayer books 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 14 x 11'' mat
