Description
5 items, including (a) cutting from a manuscript of Jacques le Lieur, Poeme sur la Passion, attributed to Master of Girarde Acarie, 154mm. by 100mm., very large and detailed grisaille miniature of Christ carrying the Cross before a band of soldiers, some on horseback, details of their armour and a trumpet picked out in liquid gold, before the walls of Jerusalem here portrayed as a medieval city, Christ's followers in distance with gold haloes, huddled together, all framed with trees, foliage and two ornate pillars touched in liquid gold, remains on verso of 15 lines in French, in brown ink in a fine lettre batârde, initials touched in yellow, three small initials in white on grey/black grounds, Rouen, c. 1530; (b) cutting from a Book of Hours, 112mm. by 82mm., with large arch-topped miniature, 90mm. high, of a bishop surrounded by attendants, kneeling before an altar with an open book, gazing at an icon of Christ before the Cross and the implements used to torture him, set in a detailed Gothic interior with three stone arches, full decorated border with acanthus-leaves and naturalistic foliage strewn on a light brown ground, verso blank, southern Netherlands, c. 1500; (c) single leaf from a Book of Hours, 135mm. by 95mm., with a large miniature, 78mm. in height, with David in the act of slaying Goliath, as Goliath in armour falls to the ground, blood spilling from his head, set in rocky landscape with medieval city in background (some damage to sky), bas-de-page containing David seated before a window playing his harp to two men, within a Gothic interior, all framed within two ornamental pillars touched in blue, the two miniatures enclosing a 3-line initial in blue touched with white on pale burgundy ground with a fly picked out within the initial in liquid gold penwork, and 3 lines of text in dark brown ink in lettre batârde, verso with 22 lines of same, with six 1-line initials in liquid gold on coloured grounds, single border panel of acanthus-leaves, naturalistic foliage and bezants, France, late fifteenth century; plus two further leaves from Books of Hours with two 5- or 6-line grisaille miniatures containing St. Jacob (from the Suffrages of the Saints) and the Pietà (opening the Obsecro te), all in good condition and in card mounts
Condition
Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing where appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."
Catalogue Note
Item a here is a fine grisaille miniature from a manuscript of the Poème sur la Passion of Jacques le Lieur (c. 1475-c. 1550), written for François I, king of France 1515-47, and his mother, Louise of Savoy (d. 1531), and attributed to the Master of Girarde Acarie (M. Friesen, Der Rosenroman für François I, comm. to facs. volume, 1993, pp. 132-3, fig. 12). The Master of Girarde Acarie was the illuminator of the magnificent Roman de la Rose - reputed to be the finest in existence - painted in Rouen c. 1525 and presented by the artist to François I. Other miniatures from the same manuscript as item a here are known, and three were sold in our rooms, 2 December 1997, lot 80.
In composition and style item b is strikingly similar to a miniature in a Book of Hours sold in our rooms, 22 June 1982, lot 93 (illustrated there on p. 159), and both seem to ultimately descend from a woodcut used by Du Pré in his Horae of 1490 and again in the Du Pré Hours of 18 July 1495.
From the collection of the late Dr F. Jossi.
