BOOK OF HOURS

Leaf from a Book of Hours

      1475 1475 - (BOOK OF HOURS). Illuminated manuscript leaf from a Book of Hours. Low countries, circa 1475. Single vellum leaf (4-1/2 by 6 inches), in black, gold, green, blue and red inks. Matted and framed. $3800. Stunning illuminated leaf from a Dutch Book of Hours, with a beautiful 14-line initial. The text is from the beginning of the rubrics for matins. Scribed in 20 lines in dark brown and red inks in a gothic script, with a magnificent 14-line initial in blue on a field of burnished gold with designs in red, blue and green, all set within a border of acanthus leaves in red, blue and green on hairline tendrils in gold. The opposite side is also scribed in 20 lines, with one three-line initial in red with elaborate extenders. This leaf is from the extremely successful compilation of Geert Grote and is indicative of the "devotion moderna" in the Low Countries; only the Dutch consistently read the Hours in their vernacular language. Fine condition.