Results tagged “Harvard”

Houghton Library Typ 32 is a mostly plain book of hours, Use of Paris, from about 1420.  There's very little decoration, but when there IS, it's impressive, unadorned, unbordered text gives way to a full-block miniature with brightly-colored and gilded foliate borders on all 4 sides.  The calendar, sadly, is entirely of the plain category, nothing but the 2-line KL at top to break up the black/red complete calendar pages.  Even the text is plain: no double-saint days except the usual 2, St. Leu+Gille and St. James+Christopher; no titles at all; no Egyptian verses or other text outside the calendar apart from the name of the month.  The beginning of July (f.7r below) gives a sample of the general feel, though this page has one slightly unusual element.  On the 6th, there is the Octave for the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, which is very common to see.  It is rare, however, to see it with just Peter's name.  Usually both are named, or if one dropped, Paul stands alone

(DB Link: 156)

Typ 32 f7r.jpeg

Another manuscript from the Richardson collection at Harvard's Houghton Library, Richardson 9 is a northern book, Use of Rome,  from circa 1500, written in a very practiced Batarde hand.  There are remarkably few errors in the completely-populated calendar and although it is not listed as such in the catalogues, the signs point to Bruges as the source of the calendar.  The start of October (f.12v below) shows an interesting listing on the 3rd, Sts. Ewald and Ewald, 2 priests who died on the same day, are listed as "Duorum Enwaldorum", "The Two Enwalds"

Richardson 9 f.12v.jpeg

From the Richardson Collection at Harvard's Houghton Library comes MS Richardson 7, a lovely book from the Troyes/Sens area.  The foliate decorations are more complex than many and very well executed, with an unusually accurate calendar.  I was only able to detect 4 errors in copying out of 203 saints.  Pictured is the second half of October with St. Simeon unusually alone, he is almost always listed with St Jude

Richardson 7 f.10v.jpeg

Houghton Library - Lat 251

Harvard's Houghton Library MS Lat 251 is a turn-of-the 15th century Parisian book.  Though the text is Use of Rome, the calendar is thoroughly Parisian.  The text is fragmentary, with both text and illuminations missing, but the calendar is complete, with 260 entries.  F.1r, below, is a good representitive of the decoration scheme, with banded foliage on the outer edge in muted colors.  Also note the unusual missing entries for January 2-4, where the Octaves of Stephen, John and the Innocents would usually be.

MS Lat 251 f.1r.jpeg