TEXT FOR THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY

Northern France [probably Paris], ca. 1460s. 130 x 98 mm. (5 1/8 x 3 7/8"). Single column, recto with 18 lines of text in a very fine gothic book hand.
Text in red, blue, and gold, "KL" in blue with white tracery and on a burnished gold ground and infilled with ivy leaves in blue, orange, and white, BOTH SIDES WITH A PANEL BORDER, EACH WITH A ROUNDEL DEPICTING THE ZODIAC SIGN AND LABOR OF THE MONTH, placed amidst a tangle of acanthus leaves in blue, red, and brushed gold. ◆Recto with a little general soiling, the roundel lightly abraided, and a noticeable smudge to the top of the panel border, but the verso quite clean with just a little discoloration to margins and the "KL" offset from facing page, the roundel on this side in excellent condition with just one or two very small scratches.

This leaf comes from a large fragment of a beautifully executed little Book of Hours done by very sophisticated artists whose illumination in general--and zoomorphic inhabitation in particular--is extremely charming. Though the recto and its roundel (depicting a man warming himself in front of a fire) are not without a little wear due to its vulnerable placement early in the manuscript, the verso is remarkably well preserved; its roundel depicts two fish (for Pisces) and is of very high quality. Please check our website for additional offerings from ths manuscript at various price points..