From the Lifetime of St Francis: A luxurious Psalter

Workshop of the Franciscan Master of Bruges, Flanders, Bruges, c. 1255-1260

A stunning Psalter made during the lifetime of St. Francis possibly for the use by a Beguine. The manuscript is decorated with ten lively, rural occupations in the calendar, five marvellous, full-page miniatures with abundant use of gold leaf and nine large, historiated initials.

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Illuminated manuscript on vellum.

158 x 106 mm. 174 of (176) leaves.
Mostly regular quires of 8, some traces of signatures. – Countless decorative line fillings and small initials in gold, blue, and red with pen flourishes, larger champie initials on pale mauve ground with white tracery. 9 historiated initials (of 10), 10 calendar illustrations (of 12), and 5 full-page miniatures. – Prayers added, along with a few later notes. – Slightly cropped, some flaking of gold, few abrasions otherwise in excellent condition. – Binding: 17th-century brown morocco with triple framing spine, back and front. Slightly cropped when rebound earlier. Resewn into binding by previous owner. Gilt edges.

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From the lifetime of St Francis: A beautiful witness of Flemish manuscript production spurred by the new zeal of the Franciscan order settling in Bruges.

Overview

This stunning manuscript features five full-page miniatures on exquisitely burnished gold ground: St. Francis and St. Clare, the Annunciation, the Nativity, the Adoration of the Magi, and the Crucifixion. The full-page miniatures all have the same layout and composition: they are surrounded by a golden frame outlined in black and decorated with blue and pale mauve bands. Within this golden frame, the scene is set under a trefoil arch surmounted by a structure with two or four steeples, rising beyond the frame, with the roofs in blue, gold, or emerald green. The palette of the artist is a striking mixture between muted shades and the bright and velvety hues of costly mineral colours. The faces are generally very fine and presented at three quarters, using an orange spot to emphasise mouth and cheeks.

Upon opening the manuscript, the reader is greeted by beautiful illuminations of the labours of the months placed in pointed frames. The Illuminator used gold liberally, not only for the frames but also in the clothing which envelopes the figures in luxurious folds. Additionally, nine historiated initials on gold grounds show seated prophets and serve as introductions for the Psalms. The style, palette, and iconography of our manuscript correlates with a group of ten Psalter that have been named ‘the apostle Psalters’ since they all share illustrations of standing or seated figures of apostles in the historiated initials that introduce the respective Psalms.

This exquisite Psalter was inspired by the fresh enthusiasm brought about by the Franciscan order which settled in Bruges in 1221 and in Ghent in 1225 – during the lifetime of St Francis. Franciscan friars often acted as religious instructors for pious women, namely members of Beguine communities. The book at hand could have very well served as a prayer book for a Beguine. Remarkably, subsequent textual additions demonstrate that this Psalter was still cherished and used in the 15th century and later, demonstrating the personal and religious value of this beautiful piece of Flemish book art.

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