Chapter VII: Preface

The object of this book is to give a general account of the various methods of writing, the different forms of manuscripts and the styles and systems of decoration that were used from the earliest times down to the sixteenth century A.D., when the invention of printing gradually put an end to the ancient and beautiful art of manuscript illumination.

I have attempted to give a historical sketch of the growth and development of the various styles of manuscript illumination, and also of the chief technical processes which were employed in the preparation of pigments, the application of gold leaf, and other details, to which the most unsparing amount of time and labour was devoted by the scribes and illuminators of many different countries and periods.

An important point with regard to this subject is the remarkable way in which technical processes lasted, in many cases, almost without alteration from classical times down to the latest mediaeval period, partly owing to the existence of an unbroken chain of traditional practice, and partly on account of the mediaeval custom of studying and obeying the precepts of such classical writers as Vitruvius and Pliny the Elder.

To an English student the art-history of illuminated manuscripts should be especially interesting, as there were two distinct periods when the productions of English illuminators were of unrivalled beauty and importance throughout the world[1].

In the latter part of this volume I have tried to describe the conditions under which the illuminators of manuscripts did their work, whether they were monks who laboured in the _scriptorium_ of a monastery, or members of some secular guild, such as the great painters' guilds of Bruges or Paris.

The extraordinary beauty and marvellous technical perfection of certain classes of manuscripts make it a matter of interest to learn who the illuminators were, and under what daily conditions and for what reward they laboured with such astonishing patience and skill.

The intense pleasure and refreshment that can be gained by the study of a fine mediaeval illuminated manuscript depend largely on the fact that the exquisite miniatures, borders and initial letters were the product of an age which in almost every respect differed widely from the unhappy, machine-driven nineteenth century in which we now live.

With regard to the illustrations, I have to thank Mr John Murray for his kindness in lending me a _cliché_ of the excellent woodcut of the _scriptorium_ walk in the cloisters of the Benedictine Abbey of Gloucester, which was originally prepared to illustrate one of Mr Murray's valuable _Guides to the English Cathedrals_.

The rest of the illustrations I owe to the kindness of Mr Kegan Paul. They have previously appeared in the English edition of Woltmann and Woermann's valuable _History of Painting_, 1880-7.

I have to thank my friend and colleague Mr M. R. James for his kindness in looking through the proofs of this book. He is not responsible for the opinions expressed or for the errors that remain, but he has corrected some of the grosser blunders.

J. HENRY MIDDLETON.

KING'S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE.

BOOKS ON ILLUMINATED MSS.

The following are some of the most important works on this subject, and the most useful for the purposes of a student. Many others, which deal with smaller branches of the subject, are referred to in the following text.

Bastard, _Peintures et Ornemens des Manuscrits, classés dans un ordre Chronologique_, Imper. folio, Paris, 1835, &c.; a very magnificent book, with 163 plates, mostly coloured.

Birch and Jenner, _Early drawings and illuminations_, London, 1879; this is a useful index of subjects which occur in manuscript miniatures.

Bradley, J. W., _Dictionary of Miniaturists and Illuminators_, 3 vols. 8vo. London, 1887-1890.

Chassant, _Paléographie des Chartes et des Manuscrits du XIme au XVIIIme Siècle_, 12mo.; a useful little handbook, together with the companion volume, _Dictionnaire des Abbréviations Latines et Françaises_, Paris, 1876.

Denis, F., _Histoire de l'Ornementation des manuscrits_; 8vo. Paris, 1879.

Fleury, E., _Les Manuscrits de la Bibliothèque de Laon étudiés au point de vue de leur illustration_, 2 vols., Laon, 1863. With 50 plates.

Humphreys, Noel, _Illuminated Books of the Middle Ages_, folio, London, 1849; a handsome, well-illustrated book.

Humphreys, Noel, _The Origin and Progress of the Art of Writing_; sm. 4to., with 28 plates; London, 1853.

Kopp, _Palaeographia Critica_, 4 vols. 4to., Manheim, 1817-1819; a book of much historical value for the student of Palaeography.

Lamprecht, K., _Initial-Ornamentik des VIII.-XIII. Jahrh._, Leipzig, 1882.

Langlois, _Essai sur la Calligraphie des Manuscrits du Moyen Age et sur les Ornements des premiers livres imprimés_, 8vo. Rouen, 1841.

Monte Cassino, _Paleografia artistica di Monte Cassino_, published by the Benedictine Monks of Mte. Cassino, 1870, and still in progress. This work contains a very valuable series of facsimiles and coloured reproductions of selected pages from many of the most important manuscripts in this ancient and famous library, that of the Mother-house of the whole Benedictine Order.

Reiss, H., _Sammlung der schönsten Miniaturen des Mittelalters_, Vienna, 1863-5.

Riegl, A., _Die mittelalterl. Kalenderillustration_, Innsbruck, 1889.

Seghers, L., _Trésor calligraphique du Moyen Age_, Paris, 1884; with 46 coloured plates of illuminated initials.

Shaw, Henry, _Illuminated Ornaments of the Middle Ages from the sixth to the seventeenth century_; with descriptions by Sir Fred. Madden; 4to. with 60 coloured plates, London, 1833. A very fine and handsome work.

" " _The Art of Illumination_, 4to. London, 1870; with
well-executed coloured plates.

" " _Hand-book of Mediaeval Alphabets and Devices_, Imp. 8vo.
London, 1877; with 37 coloured plates.

Silvestre, _Paléographie Universelle_, 4 vols., Atlas folio, Paris, 1839-1841. This is the most magnificent and costly work on the subject that has ever been produced. The English Edition in 2 vols., Atlas folio, translated and edited by Sir Fred. Madden, London, 1850, is very superior in point of accuracy and judgment to the original French work. A smaller edition with 72 selected plates has also been published, in 2 vols. 8vo. and one fol., London, 1850.

Waagen, G. F., _On the Importance of Manuscripts with Miniatures in the history of Art_, 8vo. London (1850).

Westwood, J. O., _Palaeographia Sacra Pictoria_, royal 4to. London, 1843-5. This is a very fine work, with 50 coloured plates of manuscript illuminations selected from manuscripts of the Bible of various dates from the fourth to the sixteenth century.

" " _Illuminated Illustrations of the Bible_, royal 4to.
London, 1846. This is a companion work to the last-mentioned book.

" " _Miniatures and Ornaments of Anglo-Saxon and Irish Manuscripts_, fol., London, 1868; with 54 very finely executed coloured plates of remarkable fidelity in drawing. The reproductions of pages from the _Book of Kells_ and similar Celtic manuscripts are specially remarkable.

Wyatt, M. Digby, _The Art of Illuminating as practised in Europe from the earliest times_; 4to. London, 1860; with 100 plates in gold and colours.

The best work on the form of books in ancient times is Th. Birt, _Das antike Buchwesen in seinem Verhältniss zur Literatur_, 8vo., 1882.

The publications of the Palaeographical Society, from the year 1873, and still in progress, are of great value for their well-selected and well-executed photographic reproductions of pages from the most important manuscripts of all countries and periods.

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

Fig. 1, page 33. Part of the drawing engraved on the bronze _cista_ of
Ficoroni, dating from the early part of the fourth
century B.C. A beautiful example of Greek drawing.

" 2 " 37. Miniature of classical design from a twelfth century
_Psalter_ in the Vatican library.

" 3 " 39. Painting in the "House of Livia" on the Palatine Hill
in Rome.

" 4 " 41. A Pompeian painting of Hellenic style, as an example
of Greek drawing and composition.

" 5 " 43. The Prophet Ezechiel from a Byzantine manuscript of
the ninth century A.D.

" 6 " 49. Miniature from the Vienna manuscript of _Genesis_.

" 7 " 51. Miniature from the manuscript of the work on _Botany_
by Dioscorides, executed at Constantinople about
500 A.D. for the Princess Juliana.

" 8 " 58. Mosaic of the sixth century in the apse of the church
of SS. Cosmas and Damian in Rome.

" 9 " 60. Miniature from a Byzantine manuscript of the eleventh
century; a remarkable example of artistic decadence.

" 10 " 63. An initial P of the Celtic-Carolingian type, of the
school of Alcuin of York.

" 11 " 64. An initial B of the Celtic-Carolingian type.

" 12 " 66. Miniature of Christ in Majesty from a manuscript of
the school of Alcuin, written for Charles the Great.

" 13 " 68. A cope made of silk from the loom of an Oriental
weaver.

" 14 " 71. King Lothair enthroned; a miniature from a manuscript
about the year 845 A.D.

" 15 " 73. Illumination in pen outline, from a manuscript
written in the ninth century at St Gallen. It
represents David riding out against his enemies.

Figs. 16 and 17, pages 74 and 75. Subject countries doing homage to
the Emperor Otho II.; from a manuscript of the
_Gospels_.

Fig. 18, page 77. Miniature of the Evangelist Saint Mark; from a
manuscript of the _Gospels_.

" 19 " 78. Miniature of the Crucifixion from a German manuscript
of the eleventh century; showing extreme
artistic decadence.

" 20 " 91. Miniature from the _Gospels_ of MacDurnan of the
ninth century.

" 21 " 100. Miniature from the _Benedictional_ of Aethelwold;
written and illuminated by a monastic scribe at
Winchester.

" 22 " 127. A page from the _Psalter_ of Saint Louis,
written about the year 1260, by a French scribe.

" 23 " 130. Miniature representing King Conrad of Bohemia,
with an attendant, hawking.

" 24 " 132. Scene of the martyrdom of Saint Benedicta from a
_Martyrology_ of about 1312.

" 25 " 134. Miniature of the Birth of the Virgin painted by the
illuminator Jacquemart de Odin for the Duc de
Berri. The border is of the characteristic French
or Franco-Flemish style.

" 26 " 142. Miniature executed for King René of Anjou about
1475.

" 27 " 145. Miniature of the Marriage of the B. V. Mary from a
French manuscript of about 1480, with details in
the style of the Italian Renaissance.

" 28 " 146. Border illumination from a _Book of Hours_ by
Jacquemart de Odin which belonged to the Duc de
Berri; see fig. 25.

" 29 " 155. A page from the _Missal_ of the Emperor Henry II.

" 30 " 156. Figure of King David from a stained glass window
in the Cathedral of Augsburg, dating from 1065.

" 31 " 157. Miniature from an eleventh century manuscript of
the _Gospels_, by a German illuminator.

" 32 " 159. An initial S, illuminated with foliage of the
Northumbrian type, from a German manuscript of the
twelfth century.

" 33 " 160. Miniature of the Annunciation from a German
manuscript of the beginning of the thirteenth
century.

" 34 " 161. Page of a Kalendar from a German _Psalter_ of about
1200 A.D.

" 35 " 163. Initial Y from a German manuscript of the beginning
of the thirteenth century, with a most graceful
and fanciful combination of figures and foliage.

" 36 " 164. Paintings on the vault of the church of St Michael at
Hildesheim, closely resembling in style an
illuminated page in a manuscript.

" 37 " 166. Miniatures of Italian style from a German manuscript
of 1312, showing the influence of Florentine
art on the illuminators of southern France.

" 38 " 168. Miniature symbolizing the month of April from the
Kalendar of the Grimani _Breviary_, executed about
1496.

" 39 " 170. A page from the _Book of Hours_ of King René,
painted about 1480.

" 40 " 171. A page from a _Book of Hours_ at Vienna, of the
finest Flemish style.

" 41 " 173. Marginal illumination of very beautiful and refined
style from a manuscript executed for King Wenzel
of Bohemia about the year 1390.

" 42 " 174. Miniature of Duke Baldwin, painted about the year
1450 by an illuminator of the school of the Van
Eycks of Bruges.

" 43 " 176. Retable painted by Martin Schöngauer, in the style
of a manuscript illumination.

" 44 " 177. An altar-piece of the Cologne school, showing the
influence of manuscript illumination on the painters
of panel-pictures, especially retables.

" 45 " 179. Wing of a triptych, with a figure of St Elizabeth
of Hungary, painted by the elder Hans Holbein;
this illustrates the influence on painting of the
styles of manuscript illumination at the beginning
of the sixteenth century.

" 46 " 180. Illuminated border drawn by Albert Dürer in 1515.

" 47 " 185. Illumination from an Italian manuscript executed for
the Countess Matilda in the twelfth century; this
illustrates the extreme decadence of art in Italy
before the thirteenth century.

" 48 " 187. Miniature of Saint George and the Dragon from a
_Missal_, illuminated about 1330 to 1340 by a painter
of the school of Giotto.

" 49 " 196. An illuminated border from a manuscript by Attavante,
of characteristic north-Italian style.

" 50 " 198. A miniature from the Bible of Duke Borso d'Este,
painted between 1455 and 1461 by illuminators of
the school of Ferrara.

" 51 " 201. A Venetian retable by Giovanni and Antonio di
Murano, in the style of an illuminated manuscript.

" 52 " 208. Grotesque figure from a French manuscript of the
fourteenth century.

" 53 " 209. Miniature of a comic subject from a German manuscript
of the twelfth century, representing a monastic
scribe worried by a mouse.

" 54 " 213. View of the scriptorium alley of the cloisters at
Gloucester, showing the recesses to hold the wooden
_carrels_ for the scribes or readers of manuscripts.

" 55 " 219. Picture by Quentin Matsys of Antwerp, showing a
lady selling or pawning an illuminated manuscript.

Frontispiece. Painting on panel by a fifteenth century artist
of the Prague school; it represents Saint Augustine
as an Episcopal scribe. The background and the
ornaments of the dress are stamped in delicate
relief on the _gesso_ ground and then gilt. This
picture, which is now in the Vienna Gallery, was
originally part of the painted wall-panelling in the
Chapel of the Castle of Karlstein.