Leaf from "The Book of Hours" -- Medieval Devotional in Latin, Use of Rome

 

Anonymous

 

c. 1460 -1480 

handpainted script on vellum (double sided) 

2 3/16 x 1 1/2" image size (both sides) 

unsigned 

not stated 

handwritten script in Latin with pigment painted littera notabilior, written in Gothic Italian Rotunda style 

 

vellum, likely calfskin 

 

 

21942 

$250.00 

A leaf from a 15th century "Book of Hours", a guide for the Medieval Christian's liturgical day based on the prayer cycle of the Hours of the Virgin. Prior to moveable type and cheapened papermaking processes, book production was a laborious operation, requiring particular expertise for every facet from procuring the parchment or vellum (animal skin, usually calf or goat), to decorating--or illuminating--the pages. Thus, the manufacturing of books was relegated to manucripts of highest significance, usually for texts involving religion or philosophy. The Book of Hours was among the first widely distributed manuscripts in Europe, as its use applied to every Christian of the time. Often we associate illuminated manuscripts with richly detailed books whose pages took years to complete. However, those were often display pieces, assigned to churches and monasteries or purchased by the very wealthy. For the layman, only a simple version was required, with minimal decoration, and the demand for such versions increased as literacy rates--and populations--rose.