Book of Hours, C15th | Book of Hours by the Masters of Otto van Moerdrecht, Use of Sarum, in Latin, Southern Netherlands (Bruges), c.1450

178 x 135 mm, Book of Hours on vellum, Use of Sarum, in Latin, Southern Netherlands (Bruges), c.1450, 147 leaves, flyleaves 2 (parchment, printer’s waste, English 16th century indulgences), i-iii⁶, iv⁹ (third leaf inserted), v⁹ (second leaf inserted), vi⁸, vii¹², viii⁸, ix⁶, x-xvi⁸, xvii⁶, flyleaf (parchment), wanting one miniature at beginning of Sext in the Hours of the Virgin; 18 lines, ruled, written in a Gothic bookhand, full calendar with major feasts in gold, with rubrications and text capitals in blue, two-line initials in gold on blue with red border; twelve full-page miniatures with borders on verso of blank leaves by the Masters of Otto van Moerdrecht, (with their tiny cross stamp in the upper inner border), with 20 large initials and 28 full borders on facing rectos, 2-line champie initials, 1-line flourished initials; slight rubbing of pigment in a few instances, local darkening of parchment in a few instances, overall good condition; in English brown historical calf panel-stamp-binding by Julian Notary (printer and bookbinder in London, 1455-1523) over wooden boards, rebacked, featuring the Arms of Henry VII and Henry VIII with red dragon and windhound supporter at front and a rose panel with the binder's initials at back modern fitted case.

BEAUTIFULLY ILLUMINATED BOOK OF HOURS BY THE MASTERS OF OTTO VAN MOERDRECHT MADE FOR THE ENGLISH MARKET

This beautiful Book of Hours encompassing twelve full-page miniatures was created by the Masters of Otto van Moerdrecht, an influential collective of artists in Bruges active between 1420 and 1460s. Similar to other manuscripts produced by the workshop, this Book of Hours was specifically created to cater to the English market, bringing together liturgical texts for the Use of Sarum (Salisbury) and including prayers and readings which were particularly popular with an English audience, such as the Commendation of Souls, the Psalter of St Jerome, the verse prayer to the Virgin, the Seven Joys, and the sequence related to the Passion.

The twelve full-page illuminations are executed in the style typical to the Masters of Otto van Moerdrecht. With few strokes, the artists created diverse and subtle emotions using a wide colour palette prominently featuring shades of purple, rose, red, blue, green, catching the eye of the reader. The workshop employed both gold and silver to illuminate the emotive scenes. In a rare occurrence, the silver has not oxidised and still mesmerises with its brilliance when the light touches the manuscript pages while it is being handled and appreciated.

The leaves facing the full-page illuminations are often decorated with complete borders of hair-stem vines with gold trefoil leaves and coloured flowers. These text pages also feature an extravagant six-line initial on gold ground, infilled with either a multi-coloured diapered pattern or swirling vines with colourful leaves.

In the upper inner borders of the full-page illuminations, we find a small cross stamp marking the page. This was done following an ordinance by the city of Bruges who wanted to curb the flourishing import of illuminated leaves from Utrecht and support local illuminators. To prove the Bruges origin of the illumination, the miniatures were stamped in the workshop.

The manuscript at hand is a beautiful and fascinating witness to the prolific trade of high-quality manuscripts produced in Bruges and their international appeal.

ILLUMINATIONS

The subjects of the full-page miniatures with borders are: The Martyrium of St Beckett, Saint Katherine, Arrest of Christ, Christ in front of Pontius Pilates, Flagellation of Christ, Crucifixion, Descent of the Cross, Entombment of Christ, Virgin and Child, Last Judgement, Funerary Scene, the Instruments of Christs Martyrdom.

TEXTS

Complete Calendar; St Thomas Archbishop Canterbury; De sancto georgio memoria; Paryer to Saint Catherine; Office of the Virgin: Matins; Benedicta tu; Ad Laudes; Prayers to the Archangel Michael and selected saints; Ad Primam to Complet; Salve virgo virginum; The Seven Joys of our Lady (on earth); Omnibus consideratis paradisus voluptatis Prayer attributed to the Venerable Bede, Domine Ihesu Christe qui septem verba; Seven Penitential Psalms; Litany of Saints; Office of the Dead; Commendation of Souls; Psalter of the Passion; Psalter of St. Jerome with introductory prayer; The XV O’s of the Crucifixion.

PROVENANCE

1. Illumination attributed to the workshop of the Masters of Otto van Moerdrecht, active 1420-1460 in Bruges and Southern Netherlands. The manuscript was produced for the English market based on the Use of Sarum in combination with the inclusion of specific English feasts and Saints such as St Edward, St Edmund, St Alban, translation of Thomas Becket, translation of Edward the confessor, Edmund Martyr.

2. Probably Thomas Sharp (1693-1758), Archdeacon of Northumberland and book collector (see lot 3). 

3. UK, Private Collection.

LITERATURE

van Bergen, W. S. "The Use of Stamps in Bruges Book Production." In Books of Hours Reconsidered: Studies in Medieval and Early Renaissance Art History, ed. by Sandra Hindman and James H. Marrow. London 2013, pp. 323-37.

van Bergen, W. S. "A Matter of Collaboration? Manuscript-Production Practices as Revealed in Flemish Manuscripts with Miniatures by the Masters of Otto van Moerdrecht." In Manuscript Studies in the Low Countries, ed. by Anne M. As-Vijvers, Jos. M. Hermans, and Gerda C. Huisman. Groningen 2008, pp. 105-126.

van Bergen, W. S. "The Production of Flemish Books of Hours for the English Market: Standardization and Workshop Practices." In Manuscripts in Transition ed. by Br. Dekeyzer and J. van der Stock. Louvain 2005, pp. 271-83.