A Book of Hours from the Circle of the Master of the Berlin Passion: Notes on the Relationship between Fifteenth-Century Manuscript Illumination and Printmaking in the Rhenish Lowlands

Abstract

An unpublished Book of Hours in Middle Dutch, preserved in the British Library, London (Harley MS 1662), is distinguished by miniatures, marginal illustrations, and border decoration of noteworthy richness and distinctive style.1 The manuscript contains six full-page miniatures, a full-page IHS monogram, thirty-three delicately drawn marginal sketches of birds, animals, foliage, and grotesque heads, and an array of painted initials and borders of striking variety and animation. From the boldly drawn verticals that define the written area on simple text pages to the opulently decorated openings that demarcate major texts, the manuscript displays an assurance of execution that suggests the participation of a team of mature and accomplished artisans. Yet for all its accomplishment, the Harley Hours is apparently a unicum: no other manuscript has come to light that can be attributed to the same artists.