Medieval Manuscripts

Eeek! I just had the most fantastic day this week!

As a birthday gift, E set up a tour of the library for me with a manuscript specialist – and on Monday, I got to see the “Sondersammlung” – the special collection. :D :D

To give you some more context on my manuscript obsession…my wonderful aunt and uncle sent me the most beautiful book in March. (Thank you!!!) It is a reproduction of a famous French manuscript from the 1400s, the “Très Riches Heures”, commissioned by the influential Duke Jean de Berry. The detail of the paintings and illustrations is remarkable – it’s truly a work of art. It is called a “book of hours” – a prayer book to be used at various points during the day. While these books of hours could be pocket-sized, to be carried around throughout the day, they also became the means for some of the most elaborate illumination in the 1400s. The richer the patron, the more ornate the book.

Click to enlarge.

So I was totally thrilled to be able to see manuscripts like this CLOSE UP. No glass, no barriers…and maybe I’d even get to touch them! Hahaha…

The manuscript expert who gave us the tour laid out a number of different selections for E and me. A couple of the first ones he showed us were from Georgia (the country bordering Turkey). One was from the 600s (older than the book of Kells, though not at all ornamented), and one was in the form of a scroll. Another showed the signs of previous work – there was a text in Armenian running vertically along the page, but it had been mostly erased so that the page could be reused for a horizontal Georgian text. The specialist is currently working out the meaning of the original Armenian, but it’s painstaking work.

Maybe the most impressive manuscript was a huge book (fastened with thick metal clasps) with exquisite illumination (gold-leafed letters). The first letter of each important section was painted in great detail, but no letter was exactly the same. What I found really interesting was that patterns had been stamped in the gold leaf itself – so you would see an exceptionally bright burnished gold letter, but imprinted into the surface were tiny flowers or abstract designs. (AMAZING!!!!! :D :D)

We also saw some Gregorian chant illuminated in a similar fashion. It was also a huge book with large notation so that the whole choir could see it. Really eliminates the problem of losing sheet music. ;-)

Gregorian chant manuscript.

Oh, and by the way, the specialist said we could come back. And see the original copy of Galileo’s “Starry Messenger” (observations of Jupiter’s moons)!!! And Kepler manuscripts!!! (I’m not at all excited…hehehehe. :D)

I’ll stop drooling now, and show you the rest of the pictures we took. J