BOOK OF HOURS FOR USE IN PARIS . Manuscript on parchment. S.l.n.d. (Paris, ca 1500-1510). 8 pages, burgundy morocco, 5-ribbed spine decorated with cold filets, royal blue morocco long-grain lining with wide interior lacework in the 18th century style with bird's irons, palmettes, rocaille and foliate irons, stars, circles, filets, gilt edges (Petit). Handsome manuscript of 130 (out of 134) parchment leaves measuring 12.5 x 20.1 cm, ruled in red ink, text margins of 7.4 x 11.8 cm, 19 lines, writing in gothic script in black with title or words in red or blue in the calendar and in red in the text, writing in Latin except for the calendar and a few words in French, margins of large paintings between 10.1/11 cm x 15.9/16.5 cm. Composition: first 2 leaves probably blank (f°1 - f°2) - Calendar (f° 3r - f°14v) - Extracts from the Gospels according to Saint John (f°15r - f°16r), Saint Luke (f°16r - f°17r), Saint Matthew (f°17r - f°18r), Saint Mark (f°18r - f°18v), Passion of Christ according to Saint John (f°18v - f°25v) - Obsecro te prayer (f°25v - f°27v), O intemerata prayer (f°27v - f°29r), Marian prayer, Des festes de Nostre Dame (f°29r - f°30r) - Hours of the Virgin, Matins (f°31r - f°38v), Lauds (f°39r - f°46v), Prime (f°47r - f°50v), Tierce (f°51r - f°53v), Sext (f°54r - f°56r), None (f°56v - f°58v), Vespers (f°59r - f°64r), Compline (f°64r - f°68r) - Hours of the Holy Cross (f°69r - f°71v) - Hours of the Holy Spirit (f°72r - f°74r) - Penitential Psalms (f°75r - f°84r) - Litanies (f°84r - f°85v), followed by instructions for prayers (f°85v - f°86v) - Office of the Dead (f°87r - f°112v) - Marian and universal prayers (oration of Saint Brigid of Sweden) (f°113r - f°116v) - Votes (f°117r - f°132v) - Last 2 pages missing, at least one of which is text (f°133 - f°134) This book of hours was the subject of a remarkable study by Sophie THIALLIER as part of her master's thesis at the University of Pau in October 1999. The analysis below is largely based on this thesis, which will of course be given to the purchaser of this manuscript. The text. The text of this Book of Hours is written in Latin except for a few words or rare snatches of words. It does not appear to have been written by a single hand, but by several hands, a relatively common practice in the workshops of the time. It is difficult to determine the exact number of copyists, but there are three types of handwriting: - the first for the calendar is legible, in large Gothic characters, rather angular. - The second, which is found throughout most of the volume, is a classical script, elegant and very legible, with full and unobstructed lines sometimes extending under the sentence. - the third, found on only a few pages (the prayers of the Obsecro te and some canonical hours), is a more nervous script, with tighter letters, slightly slanted to the right. The calendar mentions a large number of saints whose cults are widespread in Europe and France. A comparison of this calendar with the one published by Paul Perdrizet in his book Le Calendrier parisien à la fin du Moyen Age reveals a number of similarities. Many of the saints are the same and are mentioned on identical dates; the translations of the relics of Saint Martin and Saint Benoit are mentioned in both works (4 and 11 July) and, finally, in Perdrizet's calendar, several saints are written in red or blue ink to highlight them to a greater or lesser extent, a similarity that is very frequently found here for the same saints. The only difference is that Sainte Geneviève, patron saint of Paris, is not inscribed on her feast day, 3 January, but she is nevertheless mentioned in the litanies. This last inscription proves her importance to the patron and the fact that this saint was particularly honoured in the diocese. Taken together, these elements suggest that this manuscript originated in Paris. Two other peculiarities should be noted: firstly, the presence of quatrains written in French at the bottom of the months from February to September, i.e. 8 quatrains in which some of the saints mentioned in the month and sometimes their martyrs are invoked. These quatrains first appeared in the last decade of the 15th century, and their origin is not yet entirely clear. They correspond to a somewhat widespread practice in the printed books of hours of the period, particularly those printed by Vérard, in which we sometimes find quatrains printed after each month. Finally, it is interesting to note that the quatrain placed at the end of the month of August corresponds to the one appearing in the Très petites heures of Anne de Bretagne, wife of Charles VIII (1491) and Louis XII (1499). These indications are invaluable for dating this book of hours, which we can place at the end of the 15th or beginning of the 16th century. In addition, in the Marian and universal prayers, the prayer of Saint Bridget of Sweden, a devotion to Mary, is highlighted by a small historiated initials depicting the Annunciation with Mary, the angel Gabriel and the dove of the Holy Spirit. This is the only historiated initials in this Book of Hours to announce this prayer. The text, in Latin, is completed by a few instructions for prayer in French: Dictes dix fois Ave M (aria) et puis une fois que angelo et puis dix fois Ave Maria vera virgo et mater deo t (f 114r). The decoration: The decoration consists of 17 large paintings with illuminations and a historiated lettering. The large paintings - The Tree of Jesse (f° 30v) (11 x 16.4 cm.) - The Annunciation (f° 31r) (10.1 x 16.2 cm.) - The Visitation (f° 39r) (10,6 x 16 cm.) - The Nativity (f° 47r) (10.5 x 16.1 cm.) - The Annunciation to the Shepherds (f° 51r) (11 x 16.2 cm.) - The Adoration of the Magi (f° 54r) (10.8 x 16.3 cm.) - The Presentation in the Temple (f° 56v) (10,7 x 16,3 cm.) - The flight into Egypt (f° 59r) (10.6 x 16 cm.) - The Coronation of the Virgin (f° 64v) (10.8 x 16.2 cm.) - The Pieta (f° 68v) (10.5 x 15.9 cm.) - The Crucifixion (f° 69r) (10.5 x 15.9 cm.) - Pentecost (f° 72r) (10.6 x 16.2 cm.) - Bathsheba in the bath (f° 74v) (10,6 x 16,2 cm.) - David and Goliath (f° 75r) (10,5 x 16,1 cm.) - The three living (f° 86v) (10,5 x 16,5 cm.) - The three dead (f° 87r) (10,5 x 16 cm.) - The Holy Trinity (f° 117r) (10,4 x 16,5 cm.) The historiated initials (f°113) (2.6 x 2.6 cm.) announce the oration of Saint Brigid of Sweden. It depicts the Annunciation and its ornamentation is extended vertically and horizontally by a triple straight red and gold fillet. The 17 large paintings are of very high quality. Three of the paintings are badly damaged, two have minor paint chips and one has a finger mark. They each open a canonical hour and a new prayer. The choice of iconography corresponds to the prayers they introduce. The Hours of the Holy Cross are represented by "Pieta" and "Crucifixion", the Hours of the Holy Spirit by "Pentecost", the Hours of Penance by "Bathsheba at the Bath" and "David and Goliath", the Office of the Dead by "The Three Living" and "The Three Dead", and the Hours of Suffrage by "The Holy Trinity". The Pieta depicts a woman kneeling at the feet of Christ and the Virgin Mary. This woman is dressed in a long black dress, the neckline and fur sleeves of which are representative of women's clothing at the end of the 15th century. She wears a black chaperon on her head, a headdress of Breton origin worn by the artistocrats at the court of Brittany, a fashion that became widespread at the time. It is highly likely that this woman, towards whom the Virgin Mary and Christ are looking, is the patron of this book. Another notable feature of this Book of Hours is the depiction of the "three living" and the "three dead", a legend according to which three young men of noble status, one the son of a pope, the other the son of a king and the last the son of a count, meet three dead men who were pope, pontiff's notary and cardinal, who warn them against human vanities and frighten them of a sudden and violent death. A study of these miniatures shows that they were executed by several hands, a common practice that enabled a workshop to deliver a commission quickly. The memoir we quoted above identifies five different hands, which can be identified by the style and execution of these paintings, the representation of spaces, whether enclosed or interior, the background of the landscapes, the position and balance of the bodies, the delicacy and expression of the faces, and the ornamentation of the costumes, the modelling of the drapery, the way the fabric is placed on the body, raised on a forearm or simply falling to the ground, in a broken, angular way, with sharp edges, or in a supple way, with softened curves, and finally the way the gold highlights are placed, in flat tints, hatchings or small touches. The five hands in this study would have executed the following paintings: Hand A, "The Tree of Jesse", "The Annunciation", "The Nativity", "The Presentation in the Temple" and "The Holy Trinity". Hand B, "The Visitation", "The Flight into Egypt", "The Coronation of the Virgin", "Bathsheba at the Bath", "David and Goliath", "The Three Living" and "The Three Dead". Hand C, "The Annunciation to the Shepherds", "The Pieta" and "The Crucifixion". Hand D, "The Adoration of the Magi". Hand E, "Pentecost". The colour palette is rich and varied. Brown is commonly used, but red, blue and green dominate, with each of these three colours available in light and dark shades. These three colours are accompanied by rarer shades such as orange and light pink, which are used extensively for pathways and interior tiling. Then there are the more common shades such as white and grey. As mentioned above, these colours are enhanced by touches and strokes of gold. Without going into detail about the differences in the execution of these paintings, it is clear from examining them that they were executed by different hands. These paintings are very much influenced by the pictorial tradition of the second half of the 15th century. They also combine the influences of some of the great masters of the same period. In particular, the Master of Anne of Brittany, who produced engravings for printed books of hours, and whose influence can be seen here in the composition of certain scenes, the decorations, the attitude of the figures, the expression on their faces, the clothing and the drapery. Then there is the influence of the Master of Philip of Guelders, whose way of decorating clothing with gold highlights can be seen here, in a spiral on Goliath's armour and in repeated flames and volutes on the robes covering the horses of the three living men. The presence of these repeated spirals and flames is a precious indication for dating the volume. Indeed, given that the influence of the Master of Philippe de Gueldre was recognised from 1499 onwards, and that his activity in the capital is attested to by his collaboration with other Parisian illuminators during the first decade of the 16th century, it is reasonable to assume that this Book of Hours was executed during this period. As we have said, the 17 paintings are of very high quality. Their finesse and rich colours bear witness to the talent and extreme dexterity of the illuminators of the period. The illumination These large paintings are decorated on the sides with two types of illumination: 11 of them have a gold background with red, purple, blue and green flowers, red, purple, blue and white foliate motifs, green leaves, red filigree and sometimes a more or less fantastic animal such as a bird, snail or dragon. The other 6 have a more classical decoration consisting of wide diagonal bands alternating between gold and blank, triangles or irregular spaces alternating in the same way with red and blue flowers, green leaves, blue, white and gold foliate motifs. The rest of the decoration is made up of large and small initials, gold on a black or blue watermarked background, and blue on a red watermarked background, as well as gold and blue line breaks. These illuminations feature blue and gold acanthus leaves, typical of Parisian production in the second half of the 15th century. Although this model spread to all the major centres of French book illumination, it is nonetheless unique to the city of Paris, confirming the Parisian provenance of this book. In conclusion, this work as a whole, in terms of the saints mentioned in the calendar, the choice of texts and the style of the paintings and illuminations, is very Parisian, and dates from the first decade of the sixteenth century or the very beginning of the sixteenth. It is the work of a Parisian workshop and bears witness to the last illuminated manuscript productions that would be revolutionised by the art of printing. Binding damaged with whitish marks, cracks at the top of the hinges and worn corners, 3 of the large illuminations are badly damaged with traces of water and major losses of paint ("the Annunciation to the Shepherds", "the Pieta" and "the Crucifixion"), Three of them have a few smudges ("The Visitation" with small chips on the Virgin's face, "The Presentation in the Temple" with small chips on the Virgin's dress, and "The Three Dead" with a finger mark slightly marring part of the illumination and painting), while the other illuminations are in perfect condition. The painting of the "Visitation" has slightly faded on the facing leaf. The first two leaves (blank?) and the last two leaves (at least one with text) are missing. The first 2 leaves of the calendar are damaged and 13 other leaves of text have stains or fingerprints. EXPERT Mr Emmanuel LHERMITTE in Paris - Member of the CNE. 06 77 79 48 43 [email protected]