Medieval Theology Leaf, c. 1275 - Petrus Lombardus

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Original manuscript leaf on vellum from Petrus Lombardus “Libri Quattuor Sententiarum” Thirty-one lines of ruled text in Gothic book-hand script in dark brown and red ink.(228 x 165mm – 9 x 6 ½’’)

Three-two-line illuminated initials alternating in red with blue penwork and blue with red penwork – all extending into the margins.

Northern Italy (possibly Florence), c 1275.

The Four Books of Sentences (Libri Quattuor Sententiarum) is a book of theology written circa 1150 by Peter Lombard (Petrus Lombardus), a scholastic theologian & Bishop of Paris. It is a systematic compilation of theology & derives its name from the sententiae or authoritative statements on biblical passages that it gathered together to provide a framework to theological & philosophical discussion.

Lombard’s Sentences became the standard textbook of theology at the medieval universities in the high and late Middle Ages. A commentary on the Sentences was required of every Master of Theology, and was part of the examination system. At the end of lectures on Lombard's work, a student could apply for bachelor status within the theology faculty.  From the 1220s until the 16th century, no work of Christian literature, except for the Bible itself, was commented upon more frequently.

This beautifully scribed leaf contains a portion of Book 4, with three rubricated divisions.  

Presented in an archival 14 x 11'' mat

  • Inventory# IM-12167
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