[Illuminated manuscript (fragment), circa 1500.] Antiphonal - Lot 100

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Lot n° 100
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Estimation :
400 - 500 EUR
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[Illuminated manuscript (fragment), circa 1500.] Antiphonal - Lot 100
[Illuminated manuscript (fragment), circa 1500.] Antiphonal lettering, Northern Italy, c. 1500-1510, on vellum, ink, gold and pigments, 20.7 × 21.4 cm (overall); 14.5 × 18 cm (lettering alone). Remarkable illuminated lettering from a large choir book on parchment. The letter "C" in shades of mauve and green, enhanced by white filigree decoration, displays an elegant repertoire of plant motifs on a square background with a gilded leaf border (a few gaps). The lettering is extended at the corners by dark-green foliage ribbed with yellow, with the left end blossoming into a blue corolla from which a wild strawberry springs; a mascaron in profile cuts along the left edge. The central part, with its bright blue background dotted with white floral motifs, houses an imposing canthar with a gadrooned body in shades of ochre, resting on a scarlet console in the shape of a cherub's head; the flared lid of the canthar houses a tall plant chalice, resting on a mauve sphere, surmounted by a wreath of foliage and a red sphere. The style of this lettering clearly evokes the work of Northern Italian and Tuscan workshops, from the late 15th to the first third of the 16th century. The treatment of vegetal ornaments and gold highlights recall certain compositions attributed to Eufrasia Burlamacchi, active in Lucca between 1520 and 1540. But it is above all the palette and overall composition, marked by a definite taste for masks and canthars, that betray the influence of Francesco dai Libri (1450-1503) and his son Girolamo (1474-1555), active in Verona at the turn of the 16th century. We refer in particular to the leaves preserved at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (inv. 62.122.17) and at the Cleveland Museum of Art (1924.1016). From such masters, it seems that the painter of our lettrine drew his inspiration to offer a more measured composition, enhanced by a palette of subtle nuances; we will particularly appreciate the delicate modeling of the figures, the graphic contrast of the filigree and the liveliness of the hues. On the reverse, fragment of an Alleluia, black rotunda script and square neumes on a staff traced in red ink.
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