Artwork Page for Leaf from a Book of Hours: Initial D

Details / Information for Leaf from a Book of Hours: Initial D

Leaf from a Book of Hours: Initial D

c. 1400

France, probably Soissons, 15th century

Medium
ink, tempera and gold on vellum
Measurements
Leaf: 15.5 x 11.5 cm (6 1/8 x 4 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
The Jeanne Miles Blackburn Collection 2005.203
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
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Description

This leaf presents an extravagant visual feast that is both colorful and delicate. The parent codex to which this leaf belonged, still intact as recently as 1983, was made for use in the Diocese of Soissons. The manuscript listed Saint Medard of Soissons in its litany, which suggests that Soissons was also the city where the manuscript was made. A prayer to Saint Anne written in an Italian hand is also in the manuscript, and may indicate that it was taken to Italy during the 1400s.
An illuminated vellum page features a large, ornate capital "D" filled with dense gold leaf and winding blue and orange foliage. To its right and below, Latin text is set within alternating blue and pink horizontal bands. Delicate, spindly vines with gold and blue leaves sprout from the gilded border, curling elaborately across the top, bottom, and right margins. Faint, wispy floral sketches appear on the left against the cream background.

Leaf from a Book of Hours: Initial D

c. 1400

France, probably Soissons, 15th century

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