Book of hours of Philip the Good
The Book of Hours of Philip the Good , Duke of Burgundy is one of at least two surviving books of hours that belonged to the third Valois Duke of Burgundy . The first in the Bibliothèque Nationale , Paris , the one executed here by The Hague dates from the time he was getting older. Ownership is confirmed by the duke's portrait and by his motto, Aultre naray ('I don't want anyone else') related to his third wife, both of which can be found on several pages.
description
- Liturgy of Rome . Flanders , Oudenaarde , 1454-1455. 27 cm × 19 cm, 374 ff., With 165 miniatures
- Koninklijke Library , The Hague, ms. 76 f./20
The font used here as Bastarda known, represents a blending of formal Gothic letters and benützten for everyday purposes cursive . The oblique letterforms with the curved spreads and pointed swabs showed an overall easy-to-read font. However, their size reduced the number of lines on each page and required larger books.
The miniatures are all painted in grisaille and take up about half of the page without borders . Color is provided by the red and blue initials filled in with pen and ink drawings and the additions in the edge. The metallic sobriety of the grisaille is particularly suitable for illumination. The pewter gray hues suggest a touch of luxury that went well with the Burgundian court, where books of hours of this kind were very fashionable during Duke Philip's reign .
The first miniature shown shows the Adoration of the Kings to Non . Maria receives her visitors in front of a princely bed in the open air. A detail of it, the young king on the left is dressed in the most modern Burgundian fashion and stands apart and self-absorbed, as if he were showing his robe to the viewer. The theme of the second miniature is the presentation in the temple for the Sext . The baby Jesus was brought to the temple by his parents . Luke Gospel : "Lord, now you let your servant go in peace, as you said, for my eyes have seen the Savior ."
Performing artist
The many additional texts in Philip's book of hours explain why two clerks were employed. One was Jean Molinet, the Duke's secretary, the other Jean Le Tavernier , the artist responsible for the most beautiful of the 165 miniatures. He specialized in grisaille, no other illuminator made such a specialty out of this technique.
Philip the good
During the long reign (1419–1467) of the third Valois Duke of Burgundy, the duchy reached the height of its wealth and power. On a cultural level, the expansion of the famous Burgundy Library was his most enduring achievement. It was founded by its two predecessors and is now part of the Bibliothèque Royale in Brussels . His illuminators included Simon Marmion , Willem Vrelant , Loyset Liédet , the master of Wavrin, Jean Le Tavernier and the scribe Jean de Wavrin .
Order of the Golden Fleece
The Burgundian court of Philip the Good surpassed that of the French king in style and splendor. To prove the wealth and status of the Duke to his subjects , as well as to the world, had a political purpose. The foundation of the Order of the Golden Fleece , which took place on the occasion of his third marriage to Isabel de Portugal in January 1430, was based on a similar motif .
During his lifetime, Philip was known as l'Asseuré ('the sure one '), "the good one" only after his death. The term “the good” may have been a reminder of happier times before the rule of his impetuous son and successor Charles the Bold brought ruin to the Burgundian empire .
literature
- The Book of Hours of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy. In: John Harthan: Books of hours and their owners. German translation by Regine Klett. Herder, Freiburg (Breisgau) et al. 1977, ISBN 3-451-17907-5 , pp. 102-105.