VIRGIN OF HUMILITY WITH CHRISTCHILD AND ANGELS, miniature on a leaf from a Book of Hours, in Latin, ILLUMINATED MANUSCRIPT ON VELLUM [Bruges, c.1480-1490] 182 x 123mm. The miniature with the Virgin seated on the ground in front of a parade tent with the Christchild on her lap reaching towards two kneeling angels, an open book on the ground before them, two further angels approach from the middle distance, a complex of buildings in the background, all within a narrow rope-like border and above seven lines of text; text and miniature within a full-page border with divided grounds of green with camaïeu d'or branches and acanthus and blue with sprays of borage and strawberries; three-line frondy white initial on a ground of liquid gold with a flowerhead infill, versal initials of liquid gold on grounds alternately brown and pink, line-endings of similar colours and forms; on the verso similar initials and line-endings within 23 lines of text in a lettre bâtarde in brown-black ink, rubrics in pink, text justification: 113 x 75mm (perhaps slight fading to midtone of tent, slight oxidisation on three white flowerheads). Framed. This delightful miniature is by the illuminator known as the Master of Edward IV and perfectly exemplifies the individuality and charm of his finest style. He was named after his work in two volumes of a Bible historiale produced for the English king in 1479. A large corpus of work dating from the 1470s to the 1490s has been attributed to him, but it is in manuscripts of the 1480s that his highest quality illumination is found. During this period his approach was fresh and inventive and his handling careful and consistent -- in some cases he appears to have been responsible for painting borders and major initials as well as miniatures. Perhaps the most remarkable, and certainly the most enchanting, of these is a Book of Hours in Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery (Hart Ms 20884); extensively illustrated it demonstrates the compositional invention and narrative skill for which the Master is known. It is to this manuscript that the present miniature shows the closest relationship. The initials, border and even decorative motifs, such as the rope-like frame, can all be matched in the Blackburn manuscript, and both are the work of the same scribe. It seems probable that they followed the same decorative scheme and that the present miniature was the right-hand page of a double-page spread that opened the Office of the Virgin in a comparably luxurious Book of Hours. For the Master and his works see, Illuminating the Renaissance, the Triumph of Flemish Manuscript Painting in Europe , eds T. Kren and S. McKendrick, 2003, pp.295-305 and 335-343.
VIRGIN OF HUMILITY WITH CHRISTCHILD AND ANGELS, miniature on a leaf from a Book of Hours, in Latin, ILLUMINATED MANUSCRIPT ON VELLUM [Bruges, c.1480-1490] 182 x 123mm. The miniature with the Virgin seated on the ground in front of a parade tent with the Christchild on her lap reaching towards two kneeling angels, an open book on the ground before them, two further angels approach from the middle distance, a complex of buildings in the background, all within a narrow rope-like border and above seven lines of text; text and miniature within a full-page border with divided grounds of green with camaïeu d'or branches and acanthus and blue with sprays of borage and strawberries; three-line frondy white initial on a ground of liquid gold with a flowerhead infill, versal initials of liquid gold on grounds alternately brown and pink, line-endings of similar colours and forms; on the verso similar initials and line-endings within 23 lines of text in a lettre bâtarde in brown-black ink, rubrics in pink, text justification: 113 x 75mm (perhaps slight fading to midtone of tent, slight oxidisation on three white flowerheads). Framed. This delightful miniature is by the illuminator known as the Master of Edward IV and perfectly exemplifies the individuality and charm of his finest style. He was named after his work in two volumes of a Bible historiale produced for the English king in 1479. A large corpus of work dating from the 1470s to the 1490s has been attributed to him, but it is in manuscripts of the 1480s that his highest quality illumination is found. During this period his approach was fresh and inventive and his handling careful and consistent -- in some cases he appears to have been responsible for painting borders and major initials as well as miniatures. Perhaps the most remarkable, and certainly the most enchanting, of these is a Book of Hours in Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery (Hart Ms 20884); extensively illustrated it demonstrates the compositional invention and narrative skill for which the Master is known. It is to this manuscript that the present miniature shows the closest relationship. The initials, border and even decorative motifs, such as the rope-like frame, can all be matched in the Blackburn manuscript, and both are the work of the same scribe. It seems probable that they followed the same decorative scheme and that the present miniature was the right-hand page of a double-page spread that opened the Office of the Virgin in a comparably luxurious Book of Hours. For the Master and his works see, Illuminating the Renaissance, the Triumph of Flemish Manuscript Painting in Europe , eds T. Kren and S. McKendrick, 2003, pp.295-305 and 335-343.
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