The Black Hours - Pierpont Morgan Library M.493

            The “Black Hours,” refers to a Book of Hours that has been housed in the Pierpont Morgan Library & Museum in New York as MS Pierpont Morgan Library M.493 since the library purchased it in 1912.  According to the Morgan Library, an anonymous painter produced the manuscript in Bruges, Belgium in 1480. The Black Hours is a small book, measuring only 170 mm x 122 mm (roughly 6 inches x 5 inches), composed of 124 leaves of black-tinted vellum.  The Latin text of the Black Hours is written in silver and gold leaf in single 17-line columns of textura script.  Its pages feature 15 chartreuse (light green/yellow) panels, with initials and floral patterns drawn in yellow.  Fourteen full-page illustrations are drawn “in a restricted palette of blue, old rose, and light flesh tones, with dashes of green, gray and white,” (Pierpont Morgan Library) often featuring men and women in beautiful metallic silhouettes. Nearly every other page is framed in a beautiful blue marginal grounding and decorated with gold and silver vining, foliage, and grotesques. The painter takes particular advantage of the black background, generously highlighting and outlining figures in gold and silver.

            In a section of Masterpieces of Illumination dedicated to the Black Hours, Walther and Wolf observe, “Manuscripts completely immersed in black tint and written upon in gold and silver script … can all be localized quite accurately, namely to the southern Low Countries, today Belgium, and dated to the second half of the 15^th century.”  (Walther et al., 372).  The Black Hours’ origin in Burges places it in a central city within the southern Low Countries that Walther et al. are referring to. Over the course of the first half of the fifteenth century, Burgundy emerged as an economic juggernaut, managing booming wool and garment industries as well as operating as a cosmopolitan market town that facilitated trade with a diverse array of European merchants, from Portuguese spice traders to the Hanseatic Guilds of modern-day Northern Germany, to the Genoese.  When Philip III (1396-1467) took up the post of the Duke of Burgundy in 1419, he resolved to set up court in Burges.  Philip’s court consisted of an impressive circle of artists and craftsmen, and Philip himself commissioned musical pieces, tapestries, jewelry, and the production of over 600 manuscripts, makng him the largest patron of manuscripts by volume in Europe at the time.  Philip’s heir, Charles the Bold (1433-1477), continued his father’s tradition of book collecting, adding hundreds of additional books to Philip’s collection.  The Black Hours’ date of production sets it squarely within the reign of Charles. 

            The style of the Black Hours draws heavily from the techniques of one of Burgundy’s most famous illuminators - Willem Vrelant.  A court favorite who set up his studio in Burges between 1454-1481, Vrelant and his circle used specific techniques such as silver and gold lettering, extreme drapery of clothing and illuminated highlighting, oblong, rectangular framing, and black vellum staining, producing some of the most famous manuscripts from this time.  Some of these examples include the Viennese Black Prayer Book and the Black Hours of Galeazzo Maria Sforza.  To produce these famous blackened pages, Vrelant and his guild wuld dip the vellum for the manuscript into an iron-copper solution.  The process was both expensive and time consuming, and the blackened parchment would only hold lead white ink, gold ink, or silver ink on its pages. 

            Which brings us to a discussion of how the Black Hours reflects certain historical processes.  For starters, the Black Hours was produced in Burges, Burgundy in one of the courts of its most powerful Duchies.  The Black Hours’ was produced in the style of a renowned Flemish artist, William Vrelant, who was active at the Burgundian court and thus a trendsetter in artistic production.  At a time when Burgundy functioned as the barometer of style for the rest of Europe in the realms of fashion, art, and high culture, manuscripts of such quality acted as both status symbol and movable capitol.  Those who could afford as well-made a manuscript like the Black Hours commissioned them in an effort to distance themselves from the growing literate middle-class, which around the same period begun patronizing printing presses a la Johannes Gutenburg. As Walther et al. note, “In contrast to the mass appeal of stiff vestments covered with sumptuous gold and precious stones, how very cultivated must the noble, almost mystical black colouring have appeared!” (Walther et al., 372). 

The Hours of Mary of Burgundy, is a book of hours arranged for Mary of Burgundy (1457-1482) the daughter of Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy (1433-1477, r. 1467-1477). Though the book’s ownership is contested, as several scholars suggest that the book was made for Margaret of York who was Charles’ third wife and Mary’s stepmother, the Hours of Mary of Burgundy, as its name suggests, is most popularly attributed to Mary of Burgundy. Books of hours were based upon medieval breviaries used by various religious groups and clergy to contain their daily prayers. The books of hours were designed to function similarly, however, they were made primarily for lay peoples for use in private devotion. Developed in the thirteenth century and rising to popularity in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, due to the increase in lay piety and rising middle classes able to afford to purchase books, books of hours were objects that were intended to reflect the individuality and to symbolize a lay person’s piety and connection to their faith. In addition to their religious purposes, books of hours were ornately decorated in order to represent an indication of its owner’s status within medieval society. Mary’s book of hours, was produced in Flanders around 1477, written in the vernacular, and decorated with twenty full-page miniatures and thirty-two small miniatures. The illustrations are richly adorned with color and beautifully rendered, clearly showing Mary’s status as part of the wealthy elite of medieval European society.

Mary of Burgundy in Prayer

The Hours of Mary of Burgundy are an exceptional representation of the increase of lay piety and private devotion in the late middle ages. Books of hours were designed specifically to met the specifications set by those who had them commissioned. By allowing for a greater customization of their intended books, the laity could now specify what they desired to see depicted within the books they had ordered to be made. While Mary’s book of hours was not commissioned by her and was most likely a gift to Mary, the manuscript can, nevertheless, be seen as a reflection of some elements of medieval society’s preferences in their books.  Mary herself is depicted in several scenes from the book, most notably in a picture of her reading her book of hours in front of what appears to be a mirror that shows another scene of the Virgin and Child in a church (above). The extent of private devotion that is reflected in such illustrations shows how in depth the relationship with their faith medieval peoples desired. They desired to reach a personal connection through their individual actions of piety that they themselves were in charge of, rather than seeing their relationship with God bourn through the devotions of monks in far off monasteries and priests in their churches. The increase in urbanization, the wider availability of books, increasing “literacy” among lay peoples and even the arguments made by members of heretical orders throughout Europe in the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth centuries allowed people to take on a new role in relation to their religious practices. Though book ownership was still a practice that was dominated primarily by the wealthy due to the cost of making books, the books of hours are a notation of a definitive ideological shift in late medieval culture that placed a greater emphasis on individuality and inclusion in religion outside of the members of the clergy.

Christ Nailed to the Cross

Mary's beads in Christ Nailed to the Cross

While the books of hours were a powerful representation of the increasing desire for religious piety for lay peoples they were additionally a delineation of status within in medieval society. As I had mentioned previously the commissioning of books and their creation was not a inexpensive undertaking. A book of hours such as Mary of Burgundy’s would have taken a great deal of time, effort and expense to have bound together. The ownership of such a privatized representation of an individual’s faith would have been highly impressive to members of medieval society. The illustrations in the Hours of Mary of Burgundy are extremely impressive, both in their detail and almost ostentatious intermixing of various colors, scenes and personal elements that were desired. Much like the illustration of Mary reading before the mirror, the scene of Christ Nailed to the Cross is fabulously ornate and colored, utilizing a broad array of expensive colors such as blue, gold, and hints of purple. Though it does not possess a depiction of Mary herself, the scene is incredibly detailed and contains other elements that were most likely central to the feeling that the image had been made to emphasize. The string of pearl and gold prayer beads on the pillow and the book of hours represent the means by which Mary, or any reader, was supposed to contemplate the image of Christ’s crucifixion. The beads represent the saying of the Rosary in which Mary would have been expected to recite her Hail Marys in pious meditation of a scene crucial to Christians as their Redemption by Christ. The detail within this image is a perfect representation of the effort and money that went into creating books of hours and why they were be seen as symbols of status for the wealthy elite of medieval Europe.

The Black Hours

           After the development of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg in the mid-fifteenth century a slow segue towards an extreme spectrum between the printed book and hand copied manuscripts was initiated. The ability to afford hand copied manuscripts began to represent the pinnacle of wealth and status in the years following the spread of printed books out of Germany and into Italy and beyond. Fifteenth-century Bruges and the Dukes of Burgundy became the trendsetters of this period. Traders from all over the world came to the city to sell their products to each other. The trade of wool and cloth especially allowed Bruges to become an economic center, with the Burgundian court at the heart as influential trendsetters in fashion and art. The high concentration of talented artists such as Jan van Eyck combined with the attempt of middle class citizens to emulate the lifestyle of members of the court by means of patronage consequently turned Bruges into the hub of European book creation in the late fifteenth century. Pierpont Morgan Library MS M. 493, or The Black Hours as it is better known, is a product of these phenomena.

            The Black Hours is one of the less than ten surviving black parchment manuscripts. The manuscript itself is quite stunning; all of the over one hundred folios are dyed black. With the text written in gold and silver, and illustrated in a palette of blue, light pinks, light greens, and white, it is truly luxury item. This fifteenth century manuscript, probably produced around 1470 in Bruges, is styled after the influence of Willem Vrelant. Although the painter of MS M. 493 is anonymous, the influences of Vrelant are obvious in the styling of the figures and use of space. 

Folio 14v (lefts) Shows the Crucifixion and the influence of Willem Vrelant in the faces of the 
figures

Creating black parchment was a very costly and delicate production. The Black Hours also includes fourteen full page illuminated miniatures. The black parchment provided a surface that was not ideal for some of the pigments to adhere, however the blackness of the background provides a striking and unique contrast between the rich blue and gold which border the folios of this manuscript.

Folios 22v-23r show the Virgin and child and an example of a lavishly decorated initial and border decoration with a winged creature, respectively

           Today the parchment of The Black Hours is very brittle and flaky. The delicate nature of the manuscript is due to the carbon used in the black dye. The stain created a smooth surface on the parchment which was not ideal for the other paints to adhere for long periods of time. To make the dye itself a gall from an oak tree would have been crushed up and placed in water or a more acidic substance like wine or vinegar, second, ferrous sulphate, known as copperas, green vitriol, or salmortis would be added to the oak gall liquid. Having been stirred the liquid would turn from brown to a dark black ink. This type of ink becomes even darker when exposed to the air and soaked into the parchment of a manuscript. This type of ink is relatively shiny and slick, which is why The Black Hours are still quite a dark black. The pages have not faded, but other inks do chip off the dyed surface. The manuscript is now being kept in the Morgan Library where it is carefully conserved and kept in a stable condition.

            The Black Hours is a product of the lavishness of the Burgundian court in Bruges. The sheer cost to produce this book, especially with all of the blue pigment and gold leaf illumination, exhibits the mindset of the laypeople in the fifteenth century. Being able to commission such a book would have gone a great length in displaying its commissioner’s high place in society.

Folios 4v-5r These calendar pages show the intense black color of the dyed parchment

The Gutenberg Bible

Johannes Gutenberg began printing bibles in the mid-fifteenth century, to runaway success. His process mechanized the most time-consuming labor of book production, and made beautiful printed books more readily available to the growing affluent public, sufficiently wealthy and interested to buy books when available, but who found traditional manuscripts prohibitively expensive. Gutenberg’s first bible, the forty-two line edition, was printed in two volumes. There were two basic options available: one printed on paper, which was new to the European market, and one on the traditional, and more expensive, parchment.

Gutenberg’s development of the printing press did not immediately revolutionize the world of books and writing. The traditional model of book production, where books were made on commission and personalized for the client who commissioned them, had already begun to shift with the widespread production of books of hours to meet the large and increasing demand of the developing middle class, who wanted a personal religious practice in their homes. The central nature of books to religion contributed to this demand: people needed books primarily for practical and devotional purposes. Books continued to have no small significance as status symbols and means of conveying wealth, but this was an elite market. Gutenberg’s strategy of printing some books on parchment made an attempt at reaching this higher-end market.

Of the two copies of the forty-two line bible digitized by the British Library, one is on parchment and the other paper. Looking at the two side by side yields some interesting insights. The bibles keep the look of traditional manuscripts, even maintaining the same familiar Latin abbreviations, and the font is a neat, familiar Gothic book script. There are no obvious marks from printing, and the books bear no obvious signs, upon first glance, of being anything different from a manuscript. Closer inspection shows the lack of prickings or ruling, hardpoint or otherwise, and a complete consistency to the text beyond the reach of even the most well-trained scribe.

Though the text of the two books aligns perfectly, making the concept of a secundo folio obsolete, they are far from identical. The parchment copy is much more heavily decorated, with a comparatively detailed program of illumination, and beautiful initials throughout; it also has rubricated running heads, added by hand. The paper copy is not without decoration: though its initials are much plainer, it too has rubrication and initials done by hand. This comparison reveals the relatively slow transition from manuscript to print; though the printing press did ultimately result in a complete shift in the relationship of people to the written word, its effect was relatively gradual. What Gutenberg changed immediately was the speed and price of book production, by making it much faster and less labor-intensive to produce the text itself on the page. His press did not immediately change or undermine the general system of personalizing books to suit one’s specific needs, or the immediate place of writing in European culture – the text he chose, for example, was not the most accessible to the general public, because it was written in Latin.

The process by which Gutenberg went about producing his first run of printed bibles is also interesting, in that it seems fairly modern: he got the backing of a wealthy patron, and used what was effectively start-up capital to finish his invention, manufacture and then market his final product. Though Gutenberg did not profit extensively from his wildly successful development, this background does emphasize the middle-class, bourgeois nature of Gutenberg’s setting and his market. The printing press made books more available to a wide swath of the public previously only marginally included in written culture, and the rapid adoption of his press advanced this change.

Gutenberg’s bibles are widely cited as foundational to modern culture and the harbingers of radical social change, and to some extent this is true. As the first European printed books, they are impressive accomplishments – I saw one in person in the Library of Congress some years ago, and there was something of an aura of excitement surrounding it. The volumes themselves are fairly imposing; they are not small books, and were clearly designed for pride of place on a family’s shelf as a mark of educational distinction and piety rather than easy portability and reference. In this sense it marked the transitional divide between manuscript and printed culture: partially customizable and partially accessible to the less-educated and less-affluent, the forty-two line bible marked the beginning of a completely new era in print culture. 

Books of Hours were popular around the 14^th and 15^th centuries, often commissioned for lay people of many different backgrounds – whether middle class or aristocracy. With the ability to personalize them, they ranged between many different qualities in binding, script and illumination, though those along the more expensive strain were well decorated and expensive. However, The Book of Hours of Lorenzo de’ Medici, commissioned by Lorenzo de’ Medici himself in the year 1485, appears to be rather exceptional, even in comparison to many of the more intricate.

A man of great wealth and many children, Medici was known as Lorenzo the Magnificent as a ruler and statesman, as well as a patron of the arts. Contributing much to the artists of Florence, he supported many artists, even giants such as Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. His choice to commission the Books of Hours  of Lorenzo de’ Medici is rather unsurprising, as is the sheer amount of detailed artistry he was willing to fund in the work.

Part of a collection called the Libriccini delli offitii, di donna ( or small books of the offices, for the use of the ladies), this book was one of the five commissioned for the weddings of his beloved daughters. His love for his daughters must have been great if the amount beauty of these books of hours is any indication. The books even come with the description “for the ladies,” giving the implication that the works were meant to be small and precious treasures, much like the four Rose Quarts and center set Lapis Lazuli on the front cover. The book itself is rather small as well and with its 15.3 x 10.1 cm format it’s only about the size of a postcard. Today, the original lays in the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenzia in Florence, Italy.

 Truly a work of the highest order, the jewels themselves are not the only reason that the book is regarded as so ornate, as the ornate silver and gold gilded biding, velvet cover and highly detailed illuminations within look just as expensive. Lorenzo contributed much to the world of art, and this book is no different with the sheer amount of artistry put into the binding and pages. Engraver, illuminator, cartographer and painter Francesco Rosselli is responsible for the work within, and covered every one of the 233 leafs within with at least an initial, adornment or frieze. In fact, the book only appears to have had one artist and scribe working on it in its entirety, making the detail put into the work that much more intriguing. For only one man, the work load must have been immense, but the harmony among the art and script was well worth the work in the eyes of many who have observed the book of hours.

In other Books of Hours, there were often full-page illuminations, covering as much of the page in details, portraits and flowery intricacies as was possible. The book contains nine total full-page illuminations like these, each complete with a level of detail that seems to surpass many of the books of hours in the past. Covered almost entirely in portraits and details, the illuminations swamp the script on the pages that are the most detailed. Miniaturized portraits are present on each of these full pages bordering the script and surrounded by flowery details. Usually, more expensive books could have circlets where portraits were displayed alongside the script, but Medici’s book has pages with as many as twenty or more.  The most amazing aspect of these portraits, though, is the amount of detail put into them. Each of them is probably no bigger than a centimeter or two, but the faces and clothes are still prominent none the less. Even the cherubs, flowers, and delicate details that fill in the page between the portraits are clearly visible and distinguishable from a distance.

Even the pages that don’t contain full illuminations, the work is still beautiful in its simplicity. Historiated initials contain more portraits, the inner margins decorated with lines of flowers and creeping details that border one side of the page. Even by just simply changing the color of the ink on certain lines, Rosselli was able to make even un-decorated pages look beautiful. 

Virgil of Batolomeo Sanvito (London, BL King’s MS 24)

Made, likely, by Batolomeo Sanvito in Central Rome, Italy around 1483-1485. Sanvito lived from 1435 to 1518 and was a scribe from Padua, Italy. He was a master of humanistic italic script and it is likely that he also illustrated the manuscript. The manuscript was made for Ludovico Agnelli an apostolic protonotary (a high papal official) and bishop of Consenza, reigning from 1497-1499. On folios 1, 17, and 59 there are his arms, which have the black hat of an apostolic protonotary above it with his device, which is a lamb.  The manuscript contains the work of Virgil and Psuedo-Ovid. It is written in Latin with the script humanistic cursive. The manuscript contains seventeen miniatures. The binding, post-1600, is calfskin with added gilt-stamped insignia of George III; there are marbled endpapers and gilt edges. The manuscript itself is well made though not necessarily on the level of manuscripts made for royalty which is evidence of popular and more accessible book production . There are detailed illustration and historiated initials throughout. The text itself was made for a clergyman but the text is secular, specifically a reproduction of the work of Virgil.

The manuscript contains seventeen miniatures scenes that include putti, dolphins, sphinxes, and more. There are also decorated initials and borders. The figures within the illustrations are not depicted in a contemporary fashion but instead in antique clothing. I have included four illustrations from the text below. Three of the illustrations have to do with Greek mythology of the Trojan horse and the underworld. Each of these images is clear narrative with identifiable characters. In the miniature of the underworld the most identifiable character for anyone with knowledge of the Greek afterlife, the boatman is easily identified as Chiron. The scene with the Trojan horse is well known and in the illustration shows the moment the Trojan horse was delivered. The fourth illustration I included is called Rural Life, which is interesting because the scene seems contemporary rather than showing that of antiquity. There is a small farm house among a very pastoral scene with quite a few farm animals. The narrative in this illustration shows the life of a Shepard with them shearing their animals to milking them.

In Northern Italy during the thirteenth century there was a rise of interest in using the newly discovered copies of works by rare or forgotten authors. The thirteenth century authors who used these newly discovered works were laymen interested in literature but also members of notarial or judicial profession. An example of this is Albertanus of Brescia who copied from Carolingian codex of letters of Seneca and added marginal comments and sketches. The Virgil of Batolomeo is not so different with its added illustrations to a new copy of Virgil’s work. This new interest in antique books also came along with a reform in writing, which led to the humanistic scripts, more specifically a cursive. In Italy there was also a resurgence of book art. Humanistic art trends of the period included small initials with white shoots in colored panels, architectural borders, putti, half-length figures, antique motifs, coats of arms, emblems and medallions of the patrons. Many of these illustrations are seen in the Virgil of Batolomeo like the decorated initials, coats of arms, and more.

Miniature of the Trojan horse

The Trojan Horse: Miniature of the Tojan horse entering the gates of Troy and the historiated initial ‘C’ of Aeneas carrying Anchises and leading Ascanius, at the beginning of the book II of Virgil’s Aeneid. With display capitals in a four-color sequence and decorated initial ‘C’. 

The horse appears to have been modeled after antique bronze horses of St. Marks in Venice. The artist created the scenes so that there was a clear narrative, in this case the narrative of the Trojan horse and its entrance into the city of Troy.

Miniature of Rural Life: Detail of miniature illustrating book III of Virgil’s Georgics, with shepherds in a landscape with sheep, goats, cattle, sheep shearing, and milking.

The Underworld: Detail of a miniature of Aeneas with the Sibyl at the entrance to the Underworld; with Charon in his boat and Cerberus at the gate at the beginning of book VI of Virgi's Aeneid. 

Sources:

Bernard Bischoff, Latin Paleography, “The Age of Humanism”, Cambridge, 1990.

http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/illuminatedmanuscripts/record.asp?MSID=8288&CollID=19&NStart=24

Virgil of Bartolomeo Sanvito

Kings MS 24 is titled, Eusebius of Caesarea, Chronici canones (translated by Jerome). The author of the manuscript was Pseudo-Ovid Virgil. According to http://www.wga.hu/html_m/s/sanvito/aeneid.html, MS 24 was written and most likely illustrated by Bartolomeo Sanvito in central Italy near Rome between 1485 and 1487. The manuscript was originally made for Lodovico Agnelli, apostolic protonotary and bishop of Cosenza (reigned 1497-1499). MS 24 provides historians with a great deal of information about late fifteenth-century Italy. For example, MS 24 possess quite a few illuminations that offer historians evidence of the fifteenth-century’s demand for expensive and extravagant illuminations. In addition to illuminations, the script of the manuscript provides evidence of the popularized script of time period, as well as the use for the  manuscript.

            One interesting aspect of the manuscript is that it was written in Latin, which means it was a intended for a specific audience, most likely wealthy, and contains religious affiliation. For instance, on f. 119v the nativity is displayed with the title: "Ihesus Christus filius dei in Betleem iudae nascitur". Latin could also represent that the manuscript is mostly likely a copy of a classic work. For example, on f. 23v a Trojan horse and Aeneas carrying his father Anchises into exile are depicted.

        By the late fourteen hundreds books were mainly sought after by collectors. These collectors were unlike any before them. They desired unique and handmade manuscripts. During the late fourteenth-century was an “expansion of book production and the choice of texts to be copied was the consequence of a new manner of patronage,” said by J. J. G. Alexander. As I mentioned above, MS 24 was originally intended for Lodovico Agnelli, who collected various manuscripts. Historians are able to link MS 24 to the late 1400’s simply by acknowledging that the manuscript is written in Latin, contains personalized religious items, and references classical texts.

         At this point in history there was a demand in Renaissance Italy for classical texts. Alexander says, “The interest in all aspects of Greek and Roman antiquity, which, although it had started much earlier, above all with Petrarch (1307-74), became so widespread and so vital a factor in fifteenth-century Italy, resulted in a renewed demand for classical texts, both those already known and others only just discovered by the humanists.” MS 24 represents a time period in history, like many others before and after it, that value(d) classical texts.

         Alexander mentions that “Italian Renaissance illumination is inevitably overshadowed by the great works of contemporary Italian monumental painting.” I think this statement corresponds well with the time period that MS 24 represents. For instance, the illustrations are rather unique but are often overlooked due to the tremendous amount of artwork that comes out of late fourteen and early fifteen hundreds. One of my favorite aspects of MS 24 are the beautiful illuminations that represent the incredible new age illustrations of the fourteenth-century. MS 24 contains a total of 17 miniatures with large historiated and/or decorated initials and full boarders.

           My two favorite illuminations in MS 24 are presented on f. 56r and f.101v. The former is a scene depicting Aeneas at Cathage. The illumination illustrates “Book I of Virgil’s Aeneid, of Dido welcoming Aeneas in Cathrage, with the good omen of the flying swans, and ruined Troy in the background,” retrieved from http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/illuminatedmanuscripts/ILLUMIN.ASP?Size=mid&IllID=2855. I enjoy the colors that seem to jump off of the parchment, specifially the blues and red/orange. In my opinion, the artwork demonstrates quite a bit of talent on the behalf of the Bartolomeo Sanvito.

           I also very much enjoy the illumination on f. 101v. The illustrations represents “several episodes from book IV of Virgil’s Aeneid: on the right, the hunt during which Dido and Aeneas meet; on the left, Dido and Aeneas ride into a cave together, and in the middle of the image, Dido is on her funeral pyre, committing suicide after the departure of Aeneas,” http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/illuminatedmanuscripts/ILLUMIN.ASP?Size=mid&IllID=819.

My favorite part about this illumination is the way in which the images are depicted. Sanvito combines three different episodes into one image. Unless the person reading the manuscript knows the episodes well, they might be confused by this folio. The folio demonstrates the manuscript as a personalized piece of work. The buyer of MS 24 obviously knew the episodes well enough to be able to understand f. 101v. I specifically like the dimensions the artist portrays. The images seem to fit on the parchment somewhat awkwardly, i.e. Aeneus and Dido seem to be too big to enter the cave on the right. However, this could just be my interpretation of the image and others may perceive f. 101v differently.

        In my opinion, what makes MS 24 so unique are the various decorated initials. They are all decorated so differently and with incredible detail. They demonstrate the amount of time and effort that was put into the production of the manuscript. Here are a few examples of the decorated initials that can be found on f. 227v and f. 210v.:

Sanvito’s script of choice for the manuscript was Humanistic Cursive. According to Michelle Brown, “The Humanistic System of Scripts, which may be said to have begun, in Florence, just before 1400, was the result of a conscious reformation of script and book design.” The Humanistic System of Scripts encompasses Semigothic Cursive (Littera Semigothica Cursiva), Humanistic Book Script (Littera Humanistica Textualis, Littera Antiqua, Lettera Antica), Humanistic Cursive Book Script (Littera Humanistica Cursiva Libraria), and Humanistic Cursive (Littera Humanistica Cursiva, Cancellaresca, Cancellaresca all’antica). The Humanistic Cursive script is thought to have originated from Gothic chancery hands, who may have worked in both chancery and book spheres. By MS 24 representing this script, historians are able to assess the scribes profession, among other things, such as the purpose of the manuscripts production. For example, Humanistic Cursive was used as a clear, legible, and display worthy script.

         MS 24 offers historians knowledge about the early renaissance period in central Italy, as well as possess unique artwork that should not be overlooked.

The Book of Hours of Lorenzo De’ Medici

Throughout the Middle Ages, books of hours held individuality for many reasons, not the least of which was their customizability. When patrons commissioned a book of hours to be created, they had choices to make, many of which were determined by the amount of money they had to spend on the item; as is the way of things, the more money patrons had, the more exquisite the books could be. Arguably one of the most extravagant –– some might even say ostentatious –– book of of this sort ever commissioned was the late 15th century Book of Hours of Lorenzo De’ Medici, currently holding the shelfmark, MS Ashburnham 1874.

Also known as Lorenzo the Magnificent (Lorenzo il Magnifico), De’ Medici was known as a statesman of Florentine and as a large supporter of the arts; during the Italian Renaissance, he had such names as Leonardo Da Vinci and a young Michelangelo under his sponsorship and protection. He is suggested to have been the single biggest contributor to the Florentine art scene, though the amount of money that he spent amassing his collection of ancient texts, as well as some bad loans and overall poor business practices, eventually led to a partial collapse of the Medici family bank.

Prior to this, however, in 1485, he commissioned the famous book of hours for one of his daughters, Luisa De’ Medici, when she was betrothed to Giovanni il Popolano at around eight years old. The girl died young, however, only living for another three years after the book was completed.

The first and probably the most striking thing about this manuscript is its incredibly ornate binding, pictured above. The whole cover is bound in pure silk indigo velvet, and it includes clasps and framed corners of silver-gilt, sometimes known by the French term, vermeil, or silver plated with gold. Each board holds a large lapis lazuli in the center as well as four very light pink quartz stones on the corner plates. What cannot truly be determined from the above image, however is the scale of this manuscript. With dimensions that are only approximately 15x10cm, each page of the Book of Hours of Lorenzo De’ Medici is only about as big as a postcard. And there are nearly 500 of them, which makes this book, realistically, a teeny-tiny monster.

The calligraphy and illumination in this book of hours was done by Francesco Rosselli, a prominent artist of the time. Rosselli used a Humanist minuscule script, which was a fairly recent development at the time that this manuscript was created. The Humanist script, which was in many ways inspired by the Carolingian style, was designed as a reaction to the Gothic scripts that predominated book production across Europe for several centuries prior. Part of the appeal was its user-friendly nature in that it was fairly easy to both read and write –– more so than the Gothic at least, which was more complicated and outdated than 15th century Italians desired.

The above image is a perfect representation not only of the true beauty of the Humanist script, but of the extravagance of this text itself. There is no doubt that it was copied by a true master of calligraphy; the lettering is incredibly consistent and legible, in part due to the spacing between words and the emphasis placed on punctuation and capitalization. As for its aesthetic appeal, it is clear that Rosselli put much thought into the color scheme of the manuscript, matching the indigo and gold ink of the body text to the illuminated initials as well as the velvet binding.

The script, however, dulls in comparison to the nine full-page illustrations, each bordered by an ornate system of decorative floral arrangements, such as in the one pictured below.

The illumination has almost a hypnotic allure; there seem to be an infinite number of hidden faces within the swirling depictions of festoons and garlands framing the image of Christ on the cross. Whereas many manuscripts tend to use a limited number of thematic colors, this single image from the Book of Hours of Lorenzo De’ Medici can be seen to have at least three different shades of yellow. This is possibly indicative of a choice to use paint on these illustrations rather than ink as was sometimes done on less ornate works of art.

Also notable in this image is the historiated initial “D,” which, rather than beginning a line, as is usual with such initial, finishes the word, “Dominela,” on the vertical right border of the illustration. This image is also noticeably darker than the rest of this page, not only in color, but in content as well, as it depicts Christ as more sallow and gaunt than he normally is. This helps to further the sense of innovative artistry that is represented within this codex.

Today, the original MS Ashburnham 1874 is being held at la Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana in Florence, Italy; however, it appears to be a classic among bibliophiles worldwide. Replications can be purchased online from sources such as the Brothers Ziereis Rare Books for around €6,300 (or about $6,900).

At the time of its creation, the Book of Hours of Lorenzo De’ Medici was arguably one of the most outstanding and artistically impeccable manuscripts ever made. From the luxurious, and maybe even ostentatious velvet binding to the impossibly intricate illuminations within, this codex is a masterpiece of Francesco Rosselli and a testament to the overpowering nature of the art of the Italian Renaissance.

The Divine Comedy

The Divine Comedy has had an amazing form of influence on our society, religions, and popular culture. Dante’s texts permeate with ideas not actually witnessed in the Bible, but accepted today as parts of the Christian religion, such as the description and image of the devil, the image of hell, and the expansion upon the creatures of hell and purgatory. Most of these were never named nor described in the Bible, leading to Dante’s incredible trilogy setting the standard for most of those ideas.

The trilogy includes Dante’s Inferno, Purgatory, and Paradise, which follows as Dante himself travels through the three. It begins with Dante finding the entrance to hell, when Virgil, the famous philosopher, finds him and directs him through the circles of hell, each one worse than the last, and representing a different type of torture for different sins. When they arrive to the final circle, they see Satan continuously eating the bodies of the three greatest sinners: Judas, Brutus, and Cassius. Then, Virgil shows him through purgatory, where those who did not prove themselves in life, must do so now to gain entrance to Paradise. They walk through the seven gates of the Great Vices (wrath, lust, sloth, gluttony, pride, envy, covetousness) which is seen as a great mountain, until arriving to the peak of Paradise. There, since Virgil was seen as a pagan he is not allowed to enter, so Beatrice (believed to be Dante’s lady of love) continues to show Dante Paradise.

Depiction of Satan in the Codex Gigas, before the time of Dante

Depiction of Satan from Dante's Inferno

Not only did The Divine Comedy expand upon the Bible’s mythology, but it began a new genre for the newly created middle class at the time. Before, the literature that was available typically held the purpose of morality, learning, or religious prayer or education, and reading for entertainment was practically unknown. However, the emergence of the middle class gave the perfect scenario for the success of Dante’s Comedy. 

Archivo Storico Civico e Biblioteca Trivulziana - Comune de Milano, Cod. Triv. 1080, fol. 70

For the first time, there was a class of literate people with enough money to focus on activities other than just sustainment, that weren't the lofted higher class, which finally created a situation for a book trade outside of the clergy and students. Professional scribes, illuminators and illustrators would all work together to copy a work, which typically was requested by the middle class. When The Divine Comedy caught on in and beyond Italy, mass production of the text began and was funded majorily by the middle class. So many manuscripts were made, and it became such an influential part of life, that evidence of the Dante’s text can be found in art, orchestral pieces, and even The Canterbury Tales by Chaucer. Without realizing it, Dante created a form of heaven, hell and purgatory, that we still use today.

Gates of Hell, from Dante's Inferno, the Video Game