ca. 1475 · Northern France
by A MEDIEVAL ILLUMINATED VELLUM MANUSCRIPT LEAF FROM A BOOK OF HOURS, WITH A MINIATURE OF PENTECOST BY THE WORKSHOP OF MAÎTRE FRANÇOIS
Northern France, ca. 1475. 150 x 113 mm. (5 7/8 x 4 3/8"). Single column, 16 lines (on verso) in a gothic book hand.
Line fillers in blue and dark pink, three one-line initials in gold on pink and blue ground, two two-line initials and one three-line initial in colors on burnished gold ground, A HALF-PAGE ARCH-TOPPED MINIATURE BY MAÎTRE FRANÇOIS OR HIS WORKSHOP, the text and miniature with bar border on three sides decorated with colorful foliage on burnished gold, and surrounded by a full border of acanthus leaves, rinceaux, colorful fruit and flowers, gold ivy leaves, and bezants, verso with a similar panel border. ◆Vellum a little soiled in the margins and the unpainted parts of the frame (but not in the miniature itself), slight rubbing to lower corner of border, miniature with perhaps two tiny chips of pigment lost, but the leaf in very pleasing condition--the finely painted miniature extremely well preserved and with brilliant gilt in the nimbuses, the surrounding bar border, and the initial underneath it.
In this lovely depiction of Pentecost, the Virgin assumes the central position (as is usually the case), kneeling before an open prayer book, with the apostles gathered tightly around her. However, while the faces around her are all turned up in amazement toward the descending image of the dove, the Virgin gently tilts her head down at the text in front of her in a moment of serene repose. The emotional responses on the faces of the apostles are executed with considerable skill, and the depiction of the apostle in the foreground shows an impressive understanding of foreshortening. The artist offers a convincing sense of space with substantial architectural details (tall windows in the background, a lectern in the foreground that is prominently triangular, perhaps suggesting the Trinity). The miniature was likely executed in the workshop of the so-called Maître François, who ran a highly successful Parisian atelier during the years between 1460 and 1480, producing illuminated manuscripts small and large, sacred and secular. Characteristic of the Master's style are richly colored scenes, interiors depicted with considerable detail, women and children with pale, porcelain complexions, and male figures with darker, weathered flesh tones--all of which can be seen in the present work.. (Inventory #: ST19653-195)
Line fillers in blue and dark pink, three one-line initials in gold on pink and blue ground, two two-line initials and one three-line initial in colors on burnished gold ground, A HALF-PAGE ARCH-TOPPED MINIATURE BY MAÎTRE FRANÇOIS OR HIS WORKSHOP, the text and miniature with bar border on three sides decorated with colorful foliage on burnished gold, and surrounded by a full border of acanthus leaves, rinceaux, colorful fruit and flowers, gold ivy leaves, and bezants, verso with a similar panel border. ◆Vellum a little soiled in the margins and the unpainted parts of the frame (but not in the miniature itself), slight rubbing to lower corner of border, miniature with perhaps two tiny chips of pigment lost, but the leaf in very pleasing condition--the finely painted miniature extremely well preserved and with brilliant gilt in the nimbuses, the surrounding bar border, and the initial underneath it.
In this lovely depiction of Pentecost, the Virgin assumes the central position (as is usually the case), kneeling before an open prayer book, with the apostles gathered tightly around her. However, while the faces around her are all turned up in amazement toward the descending image of the dove, the Virgin gently tilts her head down at the text in front of her in a moment of serene repose. The emotional responses on the faces of the apostles are executed with considerable skill, and the depiction of the apostle in the foreground shows an impressive understanding of foreshortening. The artist offers a convincing sense of space with substantial architectural details (tall windows in the background, a lectern in the foreground that is prominently triangular, perhaps suggesting the Trinity). The miniature was likely executed in the workshop of the so-called Maître François, who ran a highly successful Parisian atelier during the years between 1460 and 1480, producing illuminated manuscripts small and large, sacred and secular. Characteristic of the Master's style are richly colored scenes, interiors depicted with considerable detail, women and children with pale, porcelain complexions, and male figures with darker, weathered flesh tones--all of which can be seen in the present work.. (Inventory #: ST19653-195)