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Lot Essay
BOOK OF HOURS, unidentified use, in Latin with some French, some Dutch rubrics, illuminated manuscript on vellum [Bruges, c.1465-1470; 1 added miniature Bruges c.1495-1500]
A notable addition to the oeuvre of Willem Vrelant, exemplifying the qualities that attracted the Dukes of Burgundy and ensured his place in the history of Flemish illumination.
169 x 112mm. iii paper + 189 + iii paper leaves: 1-26, 310 (of 8 + iii and I miniature leaves), 48, 59 (of 8 + iv miniature), 6-78, 85 (? of 4 +v), 98, 105 (? of 6, vi cancelled blank), 115 (of 4 + v), 126 (of 4 + i miniature and vi), 139 (of 8 + i miniature), 149 (of 8 + vi miniature), 15-178, 184, 19-208, 219 (of 8 + ix), 226, 238, 245 (of 6, v cancelled blank), 259 (of 8 + (of 8 + ix), 266, text apparently complete, 18 lines, ruled space: 96 x 65mm, line endings in gold and blue, one-line flourished initials alternately in gold with dark blue and in blue with red, three-line initials in gold on blue and pink-red grounds, seven initials on gold grounds with part borders, nine historiated initials with part borders, six full-page miniatures with full borders enlivened by beasts, birds and figures, human and fantastical, facing rectos with initials on gold grounds and similar full borders, two large initials with similar full borders, one later pasted in full-page miniature with full scatter border: 131 x 93mm (few very small paint losses in some miniatures, slight wear to initial f.131, slight smudging to border f.99v, probably two miniatures on inserted leaves lacking before ff.13 and 26). 18th-century brown morocco gilt-tooled.
Provenance: The style of decoration is typical of Willem Vrelant, active in Bruges; the French orthography indicates a Dutch speaking scribe. Although Bruges produced many books for export, the content suggests a comparatively local first owner. The feasts in the calendar favour saints specially revered in Bruges and Ghent. St Bernardino (21 May) was canonised in 1450. St Alexis (in red 7 July), patron of the Alexians who cared for the sick, and St Elizabeth of Hungary (translation 4 May, in red 19 Nov.) were models for active charity: perhaps the first owner shared their concerns. Prayers are mostly in the masculine, with one, f.184, in the feminine; the two different prayers to St Apollonia, ff.122 and 143, suggest a patron with dental problems.
Content: Calendar ff.1-12; prayer to the Holy Face ff.13-14; Hours of the Cross ff.16-20; Hours of the Holy Ghost ff.22-25; Mass of the Virgin ff.26-33v; Office of the Virgin, unidentified use, ff.35-84v: matins f.35, lauds f.43, prime f.51, terce f.55, sext f.58, none f.61, vespers f.64, compline f.70, variants for days of the week f.74, variants for Advent f.80; Penitential Psalms and litany ff.86-98; Short Office of the Dead, three responses as use of Rome ff.100-117v; ruled blank f.118; prayers ff.119-130, including to the Holy Face f.121, St Apollonia f.122, S Clare f.129v; ruled blank f.130v; prayers ff.131-146, opening with St Sebastian, with rubrics in French from f.131v, including a sequence through the day with guidance for the mass with Latin cues and prayers, and with rubrics in Dutch from f.143v; ruled blank f.146v; prayers to the Virgin and saints ff.147-155, including O intemerata f.147v, Obsecro te f.148v; ruled blank f.155v; devotional sequence opening with the Pater noster ff.156-161; ruled blank f.161v; prayers ff.162-173, including one attributed to St Augustine with Dutch rubric f.162, Dous dieus qui sans fijn est f.168v, Ave mundi spes Maria f.169v and Stabat mater f.171v, both with Dutch rubrics; ruled blank f.173v; stub of excised leaf; ruled blank with later miniature pasted to verso f.174; prayers ff.175-183, opening with indulgenced prayer to the Virgin; ruled blank f.183v; prayers ff.184-189, including the Seven Verses of St Bernard twice, ff.185 and 187v, and ending with one’s guardian angel f.188v; f.189v ruled blank.
Despite the discrete sections of prayers at the end and the repetitions – seven of the same saints are invoked between ff.122-129v and ff.151-154v - the book is uniformly decorated and seems to have been compiled for a patron who wanted French, the language of the Burgundian court, to guide him or her through the mass and other devotions but who had some familiarity with Dutch, the language of Bruges itself. Perhaps a married couple contributed devotions especially dear to each of them.
Illumination: The manuscript is a fine example of the work of Willem Vrelant, favoured illuminator of the Dukes of Burgundy and key contributor to the renowned Bibliothèque de Bourgogne, whose talents were also valued by the Queens of Aragon and Portugal (Books of Hours in Madrid, Royal Palace, s.n. and Lisbon, Biblioteca nacional, Ilum.165). For Vrelant and attributed manuscripts, see B. Bousmanne, « Item a Guillaume Wyelant aussi enlumineur ». Willem Vrelant, 1997, and B. Bousmanne and T. Delcourt eds., Miniatures flamandes 1404-1482, 2012, pp.238-255. First documented in Utrecht in 1449, Vrelant was in Bruges by 1454 where he came to dominate local production until his death in 1481. His style is found in numerous Books of Hours and debate continues over the size and nature of his workshop. The miniatures in this Hours, however, are comparable in their skilled detailing and high quality to Vrelant’s one certain documented commission, the second volume of the famous Chroniques de Hainaut, KBR ms 9243, commissioned by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy. Although Vrelant was paid for this in 1468 by Philip’s successor, Charles the Bold, he had completed his task c.1465, since the volume was already bound when Philip died in 1467. The principal illuminator of the documented volume shares not just the figure types and conventions for landscape and architecture of the Hours but also the careful modelling and application of paint.
In miniature compositions and overall design, the present lot relates closely to Books of Hours attributed to Vrelant. In particular, the Hours of Leonor de la Vega in Madrid (Biblioteca Nacional, Vit. 24-2), ‘dont l’attibution à Vrelant ne peut être contestée’ and which is ‘un des plus réussis de l‘enlumineur d’Utrecht’ (Bousmanne, 1997, p.183), is of similar quality and layout, with the richness of illuminated pages enhanced by the restrained elegance of undecorated margins: amidst all the luxury of the Burgundian Court there was a decided taste for pages without borders. Some of the same miniature compositions appear, typically never exactly, while both have historiated initials that are miracles of minute depiction; their borders could even be by the same hand. The delightful creatures and people enlivening the borders in both manuscripts are typical of Vrelant’s repertory, with mermaids, jesters, lovers, double-headed human-monster hybrids, dogs emerging from acanthus to chase rabbits. Assistants were likely to be employed in the borders and a distinct hand is recognisable in some figures, like the mermaid and merman on f.16 of the present lot. The de la Vega Hours is dated c.1465-1470, also the likely date of this Hours, given the similarities in style and depicted fashions.
The finely painted miniature of the Salvator mundi or Holy Face with its appealing flower strewn border, f.174v, may have been added to the volume at any point in its history. The bust-length Holy Face originated by Jan van Eyck, now known from a copy in Berlin (Gemäldegalerie) was modified by the addition of the cope and morse and the extension to waist length to include the hands, blessing and holding an orb, attributes of the Saviour of the World. This format became popular in the second half of the century and was known to Vrelant (e.g. J. Paul Getty Museum, ms Ludwig IX 8, f.32). The precise type of the pasted-in miniature comes from a pattern popularised by the Master of the David Scenes in the Grimani Breviary, probably active in Bruges c.1490-1520, as seen in the Hours of Joanna the Mad, Duchess of Burgundy and Queen of Castile (BL Add. ms 18852 f.65v), datable between 1496 and 1506. The greater linearity and clarity of contour in the added miniature indicate the work not of the Master but of an illuminator with access to his patterns, possibly the Brukenthal Master who painted the subject in his name work, the Book of Hours in Sibiu, dated to c.1495, to which both Masters contributed (Brukenthal Museum, Ms 761, p.32; see A.-M.W. As-Vijvers, Re-Making the Margin: The Master of the David Scenes and Flemish Manuscript Painting around 1500, 2013, pp.245-69).
The subjects of the miniatures are: Crucifixion f.15v, Pentecost f.21v, Annunciation f.34v, Coronation of the Virgin f.79v, Last Judgement f.85v, funeral mass f.99v, Salvator mundi (pasted in) f.174v
The subjects of the historiated initials are: Visitation f.43, Nativity f.51, Annunciation to the Shepherds f.55, Adoration of the Magi f.58, Circumcision f.61, Massacre of the Innocents f.64, Flight into Egypt f.70, St Sebastian f.131, the Virgin and St John the Evangelist f.147.
The illuminated initials with full borders are on ff.13, 26
The illuminated initials with part borders are on ff.74, 151, 162, 169v, 171v, 175v, 184
A notable addition to the oeuvre of Willem Vrelant, exemplifying the qualities that attracted the Dukes of Burgundy and ensured his place in the history of Flemish illumination.
169 x 112mm. iii paper + 189 + iii paper leaves: 1-26, 310 (of 8 + iii and I miniature leaves), 48, 59 (of 8 + iv miniature), 6-78, 85 (? of 4 +v), 98, 105 (? of 6, vi cancelled blank), 115 (of 4 + v), 126 (of 4 + i miniature and vi), 139 (of 8 + i miniature), 149 (of 8 + vi miniature), 15-178, 184, 19-208, 219 (of 8 + ix), 226, 238, 245 (of 6, v cancelled blank), 259 (of 8 + (of 8 + ix), 266, text apparently complete, 18 lines, ruled space: 96 x 65mm, line endings in gold and blue, one-line flourished initials alternately in gold with dark blue and in blue with red, three-line initials in gold on blue and pink-red grounds, seven initials on gold grounds with part borders, nine historiated initials with part borders, six full-page miniatures with full borders enlivened by beasts, birds and figures, human and fantastical, facing rectos with initials on gold grounds and similar full borders, two large initials with similar full borders, one later pasted in full-page miniature with full scatter border: 131 x 93mm (few very small paint losses in some miniatures, slight wear to initial f.131, slight smudging to border f.99v, probably two miniatures on inserted leaves lacking before ff.13 and 26). 18th-century brown morocco gilt-tooled.
Provenance: The style of decoration is typical of Willem Vrelant, active in Bruges; the French orthography indicates a Dutch speaking scribe. Although Bruges produced many books for export, the content suggests a comparatively local first owner. The feasts in the calendar favour saints specially revered in Bruges and Ghent. St Bernardino (21 May) was canonised in 1450. St Alexis (in red 7 July), patron of the Alexians who cared for the sick, and St Elizabeth of Hungary (translation 4 May, in red 19 Nov.) were models for active charity: perhaps the first owner shared their concerns. Prayers are mostly in the masculine, with one, f.184, in the feminine; the two different prayers to St Apollonia, ff.122 and 143, suggest a patron with dental problems.
Content: Calendar ff.1-12; prayer to the Holy Face ff.13-14; Hours of the Cross ff.16-20; Hours of the Holy Ghost ff.22-25; Mass of the Virgin ff.26-33v; Office of the Virgin, unidentified use, ff.35-84v: matins f.35, lauds f.43, prime f.51, terce f.55, sext f.58, none f.61, vespers f.64, compline f.70, variants for days of the week f.74, variants for Advent f.80; Penitential Psalms and litany ff.86-98; Short Office of the Dead, three responses as use of Rome ff.100-117v; ruled blank f.118; prayers ff.119-130, including to the Holy Face f.121, St Apollonia f.122, S Clare f.129v; ruled blank f.130v; prayers ff.131-146, opening with St Sebastian, with rubrics in French from f.131v, including a sequence through the day with guidance for the mass with Latin cues and prayers, and with rubrics in Dutch from f.143v; ruled blank f.146v; prayers to the Virgin and saints ff.147-155, including O intemerata f.147v, Obsecro te f.148v; ruled blank f.155v; devotional sequence opening with the Pater noster ff.156-161; ruled blank f.161v; prayers ff.162-173, including one attributed to St Augustine with Dutch rubric f.162, Dous dieus qui sans fijn est f.168v, Ave mundi spes Maria f.169v and Stabat mater f.171v, both with Dutch rubrics; ruled blank f.173v; stub of excised leaf; ruled blank with later miniature pasted to verso f.174; prayers ff.175-183, opening with indulgenced prayer to the Virgin; ruled blank f.183v; prayers ff.184-189, including the Seven Verses of St Bernard twice, ff.185 and 187v, and ending with one’s guardian angel f.188v; f.189v ruled blank.
Despite the discrete sections of prayers at the end and the repetitions – seven of the same saints are invoked between ff.122-129v and ff.151-154v - the book is uniformly decorated and seems to have been compiled for a patron who wanted French, the language of the Burgundian court, to guide him or her through the mass and other devotions but who had some familiarity with Dutch, the language of Bruges itself. Perhaps a married couple contributed devotions especially dear to each of them.
Illumination: The manuscript is a fine example of the work of Willem Vrelant, favoured illuminator of the Dukes of Burgundy and key contributor to the renowned Bibliothèque de Bourgogne, whose talents were also valued by the Queens of Aragon and Portugal (Books of Hours in Madrid, Royal Palace, s.n. and Lisbon, Biblioteca nacional, Ilum.165). For Vrelant and attributed manuscripts, see B. Bousmanne, « Item a Guillaume Wyelant aussi enlumineur ». Willem Vrelant, 1997, and B. Bousmanne and T. Delcourt eds., Miniatures flamandes 1404-1482, 2012, pp.238-255. First documented in Utrecht in 1449, Vrelant was in Bruges by 1454 where he came to dominate local production until his death in 1481. His style is found in numerous Books of Hours and debate continues over the size and nature of his workshop. The miniatures in this Hours, however, are comparable in their skilled detailing and high quality to Vrelant’s one certain documented commission, the second volume of the famous Chroniques de Hainaut, KBR ms 9243, commissioned by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy. Although Vrelant was paid for this in 1468 by Philip’s successor, Charles the Bold, he had completed his task c.1465, since the volume was already bound when Philip died in 1467. The principal illuminator of the documented volume shares not just the figure types and conventions for landscape and architecture of the Hours but also the careful modelling and application of paint.
In miniature compositions and overall design, the present lot relates closely to Books of Hours attributed to Vrelant. In particular, the Hours of Leonor de la Vega in Madrid (Biblioteca Nacional, Vit. 24-2), ‘dont l’attibution à Vrelant ne peut être contestée’ and which is ‘un des plus réussis de l‘enlumineur d’Utrecht’ (Bousmanne, 1997, p.183), is of similar quality and layout, with the richness of illuminated pages enhanced by the restrained elegance of undecorated margins: amidst all the luxury of the Burgundian Court there was a decided taste for pages without borders. Some of the same miniature compositions appear, typically never exactly, while both have historiated initials that are miracles of minute depiction; their borders could even be by the same hand. The delightful creatures and people enlivening the borders in both manuscripts are typical of Vrelant’s repertory, with mermaids, jesters, lovers, double-headed human-monster hybrids, dogs emerging from acanthus to chase rabbits. Assistants were likely to be employed in the borders and a distinct hand is recognisable in some figures, like the mermaid and merman on f.16 of the present lot. The de la Vega Hours is dated c.1465-1470, also the likely date of this Hours, given the similarities in style and depicted fashions.
The finely painted miniature of the Salvator mundi or Holy Face with its appealing flower strewn border, f.174v, may have been added to the volume at any point in its history. The bust-length Holy Face originated by Jan van Eyck, now known from a copy in Berlin (Gemäldegalerie) was modified by the addition of the cope and morse and the extension to waist length to include the hands, blessing and holding an orb, attributes of the Saviour of the World. This format became popular in the second half of the century and was known to Vrelant (e.g. J. Paul Getty Museum, ms Ludwig IX 8, f.32). The precise type of the pasted-in miniature comes from a pattern popularised by the Master of the David Scenes in the Grimani Breviary, probably active in Bruges c.1490-1520, as seen in the Hours of Joanna the Mad, Duchess of Burgundy and Queen of Castile (BL Add. ms 18852 f.65v), datable between 1496 and 1506. The greater linearity and clarity of contour in the added miniature indicate the work not of the Master but of an illuminator with access to his patterns, possibly the Brukenthal Master who painted the subject in his name work, the Book of Hours in Sibiu, dated to c.1495, to which both Masters contributed (Brukenthal Museum, Ms 761, p.32; see A.-M.W. As-Vijvers, Re-Making the Margin: The Master of the David Scenes and Flemish Manuscript Painting around 1500, 2013, pp.245-69).
The subjects of the miniatures are: Crucifixion f.15v, Pentecost f.21v, Annunciation f.34v, Coronation of the Virgin f.79v, Last Judgement f.85v, funeral mass f.99v, Salvator mundi (pasted in) f.174v
The subjects of the historiated initials are: Visitation f.43, Nativity f.51, Annunciation to the Shepherds f.55, Adoration of the Magi f.58, Circumcision f.61, Massacre of the Innocents f.64, Flight into Egypt f.70, St Sebastian f.131, the Virgin and St John the Evangelist f.147.
The illuminated initials with full borders are on ff.13, 26
The illuminated initials with part borders are on ff.74, 151, 162, 169v, 171v, 175v, 184