Illuminated Manuscripts for Sale

A Collaboration of Artists: an Early Parisian Book of Hours

Master of Johannete Ravenelle and the Master of the Berry's Cleres Femmes, France, Paris, c. 1400-1405

Contains 13 miniatures, decorated borders and initials. The text includes a Calendar in French.

€ 140'000,- (VAT not included).

Manuscript on vellum. Binding: 17th-century red velvet over cardboard with gold stamps on spine and covers, four raised bands, headbands, edges gilt.

160mm x 113mm, 203 leaves, 13 miniatures.

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Two artists' skills combined create a unique manuscript

Overview

This Book of Hours is truly unique. Made in Paris, potentially for a Breton commissioner, this copy of a personal prayer book is magnificently illuminated with a variety of scenes and figures.

The first artist to work on this manuscript, the Master of Johannete Ravenelle, is indentifiable by his vivid orange and blue palette, rooted firmly in the late 14th century manuscript tradition. In stark contrast, the second illuminator, presumably the Master of the Berry Cleres Femmes, brings an expressive and realistic style. Where the Master of Johannete Ravenelle employs angular designs and detailed faces, the Master of the Berry Cleres Femmes is influenced heavily by the Flemish Art Nova and 'new realism' popular in France in the 15th century.

In this work, two worlds collide on a threshold between the 14th and 15th centuries, to stunning effect.

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