The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of December 25, 2025
Leaf from a Book of Hours: King David
c. 1500
circle of Jean Bourdichon
Sheet: 27.5 x 20.2 cm (10 13/16 x 7 15/16 in.)
John L. Severance Fund 1985.81
Location: Not on view
Description
The illuminator Jean Bourdichon was court painter to four successive kings of France: Louis XI, Charles VIII, Louis XII, and Francis I. On the basis of surviving documents, he seems to have been principally active between 1478 and 1520. The text is that of Psalm 50 beginning Miserere mei deus (Have mercy on me, O God), and one of the Seven Penitential Psalms found in medieval books of hours. It is the life of David, who according to tradition, was the author of the psalms, that dominates the miniatures for the Penitential Psalms. As a proud and powerful king who flagrantly committed both adultery and murder, David was struck down and reprimanded by God. The Penitential Psalms themselves, especially Psalm 50, are associated with his penance for these sins.- A Medieval Treasury: An Exhibition of Medieval Art from the Third to the Sixteenth Century, Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. (October 8- Novermber 3, 1968) by Robert G. Clakins, p.185, cat.no. 112
- {{cite web|title=Leaf from a Book of Hours: King David|url=false|author=Jean Bourdichon|year=c. 1500|access-date=25 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1985.81