Ascension, historiated initial on a cutting from an illuminated Antiphonal, on vellum [southern Germany (perhaps Nuremberg), c.1450]

a cutting, 180mm. by 98mm., with a large initial 'P' (opening "Post passionem suam per dies ...", the first nocturn of Matins for Ascension), in burnished gold on black grounds heightened with liquid gold tracery, a green-winged dragon, a man leaning nonchalantly against a curl of gold acanthus-leaf with his blue hat hung over its end and two lions with shaggy manes overlaid on the body of the initial, remains of fleshy scrolling acanthus-leaf foliage in border, three lines of text with music on 4-line stave with hufnagelschrift neumes, slight cockling and small marks on verso from having been framed, else excellent condition

The foliage in the borders and aspects of the figures within the initial point to Nuremberg (cf. P. Wescher, Miniaturen -Handschriften und Einzelblätter- des Kupferstichkabinetts der Staatlichen Museen Berlin, 1931, p.202), but what is striking about this miniature is that it presents an early example of a figural-initial (for other, and usually later, examples see C. de Hamel, Macclesfield Alphabet Book, 2010, esp. p.12 and fols.10r and 15r-20v, and L. Kaemmerer, 'Ein spätgotisches figurealphabet im Berliner Kupferstichkabinet' Sonder-Abdruck aus dem Jahrbuch der königlich preussischen Kunstsammlungen, 4, 1897).