Book of Hours, Use of Rouen, in Latin and French [France (Rouen), 1490s]

149x107mm, vellum, ii+109+ii leaves, in 15 quires of 8 leaves except i12, iii2, vi7 (wanting iii), ix2, xv6, 18 lines, 83x54mm, 24 calendar miniatures within panel borders, except the first page with a full border, 13 large miniatures with full borders or within frames, all text pages with panel borders; border on f.1r and frames on ff.13r, 23r, and 64r slightly cropped, some miniatures with pigment loss, mostly affected that at end of volume on f.101v, modern binding of reddish calf with gilt panels and spine, to an 18th-century design

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."

provenance

(1) Written for the laywoman depicted in the final miniature, who presumably lived in Rouen.

(2) Signed and dated by ‘D[enis] Berée de Courpont 1709’ (f.1r), lawyer at the Grand Council, and owner of several other illuminated manuscripts including a Book of Hours of Evreux Use (Berkeley, UCB MS 131) a Chroniques de Normandie (ÖNB, Cod.2629), and a Relation historique d'un bourgeois de Gisors (Paris, BnF, fr.13674).

(3) Inscribed by ‘Charles Chadwick, Healey-Hall, 1784’ (f.ii).

(4) Hoepli, Cento libri preciosi, 1922, no.II pp.4-6 and colour plates II-III; sold in our rooms, 21 June 1988, lot 111, to Fogg, his Catalogue 12, 1989, no.27 (col.pls.)

text and illumination

Calendar in French (f.1r); Gospel extracts (f.13r); Obsecro te (f.17v), O intemerata (f.20v); Hours of the Virgin, with Matins (f.23r), Lauds (f.31r), followed by suffrages (f.39r) including St Romanus, Prime (f.41r), Terce (f.44r), Sext (f.46v), None (f.49r), Vespers (f.51v), Compline (f.54r); Hours of the Cross (f.57v); Hours of the Holy Spirit (f.60r); Seven Penitential Psalms (f.64r), litany (73r), and three collects; Office of the Dead (f.78r); Quinze Joies (f.101v) and Sept requêtes (f.106v) and a prayer to the Cross (f.109r), all in French.

The miniatures appear to be by at least six different illuminators. Especially striking is the miniature at the beginning of the Penitential Psalms with the exceptionally careful rendering of Bathsheba's naked body, closely linked to Tours illumination. Other miniatures reflect the styles of the most successful Rouen illuminators of their time, the Master of the Echevinage de Rouen, active in the 1470s and 1480s, and Robert Boyvin of the following generation. Especially fine are the miniatures for Lauds and Prime in another style different from Rouen.