Book of Hours, Use of Rome — 15th century, end; Italian, North-east

Title

Book of Hours, Use of Rome — 15th century, end; Italian, North-east

Shelfmark

MS. Canon. Liturg. 219

Associated place

Italian

Place of origin

Italian, North-east

Date

15th century, end

Language

Italian

Latin

Contents

Form

codex

Support

parchment

Physical extent

1 + 218 + 1 fol.

Decoration

Good borders.

Good historiated initials. (Pächt and Alexander ii. 909)

Binding

15th century, end, Italian (as MS.): wood boards with slight inside bevel; dark brown hard polished leather, cuir ciselé, incised with a full-standing ‘plague saint’ within a leafy border on each cover, all in relief on a stippled background – (front) St. Sebastian, pierced with arrows, and (back) St. Roch, holding a staff and displaying the sore on his thigh to a smaller figure; spine with similar leafy decoration; traces of a lost central clasp, once with small squarish fittings and a broad strap; gilt edges, not gauffered; endbands oversewn diagonally in red and green thread. Paste-downs (not flyleaves) of red ‘Dutch gilt paper’ embossed with hunting scenes, added in Italy, late 17th or 18th century (cf. MS. Canon. Liturg. 136). A miniature book, 77 55 c. 45–47 (book closed).

Perhaps partly intended as an amulet against the plague and other perils. It ends with prayers for protection against both plague and shipwreck, also invoking St. Christopher for a male owner.

Title

'...Offitium beate Marie Virginis secundum consuetudinem Curie Romane'

Shelfmark

MS. Canon. Liturg. 219

Summary

'...Offitium beate Marie Virginis secundum consuetudinem Curie Romane', preceded by a Calendar (fol. 1), and followed by:

The Penitential Psalms with Litany (fol. 101)

'Offitium in agenda Mortuorum' (fol. 131)

'Offitium sanctissime Crucis' (fol. 191)

A Litany of the Virgin (fol. 197v)

A coat of arms in the border on fol. 13 is: party per pale gules and sable, six leopards' faces, three and three in pale, counterchanged.

Date

Written in the 15th century in Italy

Language

Latin

Physical facet

On parchment, with an illuminated border, a few small miniatures, etc.; binding, black stippled leather on boards with Stt. Sebastian and Roche on the sides, on the inner covers are two figures of hunters stamped in red on gilt paper, apparently contemporary Italian work

Physical extent

220 Leaves