Book of Hours by the Master of Petrarch’s Triumphs
Use of Bourges
- Master of Petrarch's Triumphs
Manuscript in Latin on vellum.
France, Paris, c. 1500.
191 x 130 mm
Price on request.
118 (of 125) leaves. 10 (of 16) arge nad 13 small miniatures in various sizes, 24 illustrated calendar leaves. Incomplete. Flexible French vellum binding of the mid-16th century with a central oval, showing gilt entrelacs decoration on front and rear board.
The Master of Petrarch’s Triumph was one of the most popular artists of his time, working for the court and the high nobility of France. Our richly decorated manuscript suggests a respectable and wealthy owner.
The sublime style of our Book of Hours points unmistakably to that of the Master of Petrarch’s Triumphs, named after a manuscript commissioned by cardinal Georges d’Amboise for king Louis XII.
Of the same hand, six other Books of Hours are so far known: the Small Hours for queen Anne of Brittany, the Hours for Henri IV, the Hours of Claude Molé, the “Je porte une M” Book of Hours for an unknown patron, and a sublime Book of Hours that is now in a private collection. The present Book of Hours would thus be the seventh. The calendar images are compositions that recall the small Hours for Anne of Brittany, however in a simpler form and most likely executed by a collaborator of the Petrarch Master.
The grisaille motifs in the tympanums of some of the painted frames are particularly attractive and noteworthy. They relate to the events in the miniature, are often not easy to interpret and are reminiscent of the glazed sculptures of the della Robbia dynasty in Florence.
