Book of Hours leaf Early & Decorative

Original leaf from a late-medieval manuscript Book of Hours. 14 lines of text are written in Latin, on animal vellum. Ruled in red with dark brown ink, in fine Gothic script, with rubrics (headings) in red.One two-line initial in blue with delicate white tracery on a gold ground with decorative infill extending into the margin with vines in blue, gold, orange and mauve; eleven one-line initials in gold on blue and mauve ground with white tracery; five line-extenders in gold, blue, mauve and white.The large M” opens Psalm 50:3-12: “Miserere mei?” (have mercy on me, O God, according to thy great mercy. And according to thy multitude of thy tender mercies?).Book of Hours are personal prayer books of a devout and status-conscious society and are not only works or art, but also cultural documents of their time. They reveal a unique combination of sacred and secular imagery – made of the finest materials, by the best craftsmen, for a small audience that could both appreciate and afford them.

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