The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 19, 2025

Cutting from an Antiphonary: Initial G[loria tibi Trinitas]: The Trinity

c. 1410

Bohemia, Prague, early 15th Century

ink, tempera, and gold on parchment
Sheet: 13 x 11 cm (5 1/8 x 4 5/16 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1949.537
Location: Not on view

Description

This beautiful initial comes from a choral book called an antiphonary. The text introduced by this initial is the antiphon that follows the reading of the nine psalms in the office of prime: Gloria tibi Trinitas... (Glory be to the Trinity). By the later Middle Ages, artists were representing the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Ghost) in the form shown here.
  • Vladimir G. Simkhovitch
    Vladimir G. Simkhovitch
  • The Decorated Letter and the Illuminator's Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 25-December 19, 1993).
    Gothic Art 1360-1440. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 6-September 15, 1963).
  • {{cite web|title=Cutting from an Antiphonary: Initial G[loria tibi Trinitas]: The Trinity|url=false|author=|year=c. 1410|access-date=19 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1949.537