Book of Hours (for the use of Cambrai). - Lot 9

Book of Hours (for the use of Cambrai). In Latin and French, illuminated manuscript on parchment. Northern France, probably Valenciennes, circa 1475-1480. With 1 large and 14 small miniatures by the workshop of Simon Marmion (1425-1489, active from 1449-1489 in Amiens, Valenciennes and Tournai). 84 ff, preceded and followed by 3 paper endpapers, lacunar manuscript, impracticable collation, Burgundian bastard script in brown ink, text copied on 24 lines per page, ruled in pale red ink (justification 105x70 mm), headings in red, some capitals highlighted in yellow, numerous initials in burnished gold on pink and blue backgrounds with white highlights (1 to 2 lines high), end-of-line also in burnished gold on pink and blue backgrounds highlighted in white, large initial in blue with white highlights on a pink background decorated with colored vines (5 lines high), 14 small miniatures set in marginal side borders and 1 large miniature set in an illuminated border, borders on reserved backgrounds outlined with gold fillet, decorated with golden-brown and blue acanthus leaves, sometimes showing roots, foliage, flowers and birds, a few words added at a later period to make up for incomplete texts. Bound in red morocco in the 19th century, with 4 ribbed spines, cloisonné and fleuronné, gilded cathedral decoration on the boards, marbled paper counter-guards, gilt roulette on the counter-plates, guilloche-trimmed edges, gilt edges (corners a little dulled, upper jaw a little fragile, some spotting, but overall good condition). Some rubbing or ink discharge; a few scattered stains to the parchment. Despite the gaps, the text and illuminations are in good condition. Size of leaves: 158x110mm; size of binding: 164x122mm Provenance : 1- This manuscript was copied for the specific liturgical use of Cambrai, and contains litanies dedicated to the saints saints honored very locally in the diocese of Cambrai (see Text below, ff. 76v-79v). The numerous entries in French reflect the particularities of the language spoken in northern France, particularly in Hainaut and Cambrésis. However, it is clear that this Book of Hours was painted in Valenciennes: Valenciennes was part of the diocese of Cambrai. diocese of Cambrai. The presence of St. John the Baptist at the very beginning of the litany, just after the archangels and angels and before St. Peter and St. Paul, indicates a particular devotion to St. John the Baptist, perhaps linked to the abbey of St. John the Baptist in Valenciennes. The litany in the present hours is particularly long. A similar litany, also very long, is found in a later manuscript (see Hours of Guillaume Braque (c. 1520), made for an abbot of the abbey of Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Valenciennes; London, Sam Fogg (1998) no. 32: reviewed in G. Clark, Beyond Use, LndnFoggInv04406/11685). Stylistically, the illuminations and decorations can be traced back to Simon Marmion and his workshop (active in Valenciennes from c. 1449-1489). Particularly noteworthy is the very special style of borders on reserved backgrounds outlined with a gilded fillet, decorated with golden-brown and blue acanthus leaves (sometimes showing roots), foliage, flowers and birds. This characteristic type of border can be found in other manuscripts associated with Simon Marmion and his workshop, for example in the leaves from the Berlaymont Hours (San Marino, Huntington Library, HM 1173, Valenciennes, datable circa 1470-1475; see Kren and McKendrick, 2003, cat. 12, pp. 108-110), in the leaves from the Visions of Chevalier Tondal (Los Angeles, Getty Museum, MS 30, Valenciennes and Ghent, datable 1475; see Kren and McKendrick, 2003, cat. 14, pp. 112-116), in the Vision of the Soul by Guy Thurno (Los Angeles, Getty Museum, MS 31, Valenciennes and Ghent, dated 1475; see Kren and McKendrick, 2003, cat. 13, pp. 111-112) and in the Vie de sainte Catherine (translation by Jean Miélot), a manuscript acquired by the BnF in 2008 (Paris, BnF, NAF 28650, Valenciennes et Gand, dated c. 1475; see Bousmanne and Delcourt, 2011, cat. 111, pp. 397-398). It is interesting to note that Marmion and his workshop adopted this type of border before aligning themselves with the Ganto-Bruges model. On the type of borders in the present hours, see Hindman, 1992 and Hindman, 2023. 2- Sam Fogg, London (2013) and before Galerie Les Enluminures, Paris and Chicago, Picturing Piety: The Book of Hours (2008), cat. 13, no. 22). This manuscript is listed in the G. Clark, Beyond Use (Sewanee), EnluminuresCat13#22. Although this manuscript is fragmentary, it contains illuminations of great delicacy.