FIVE HISTORIATED INITIALS

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(Framed all together; on the reverses remains of text and 4-line red staves; slight rubbing in a couple of places, else in very good condition). FINE INITIALS FROM A LAVISHLY ILLUS TRATED GRADUAL OF THE BEGINNING OF THE 16TH CENTURY: AN EXCEPTIONALLY RICH PROJECT OF DECORATION. According to the textual and musical fragments on the reverse of a couple of our cuttings, the five capitals come from a Gradual. Indeed, the K probably opened the Kyrie eleison (since there are remains of the Gloria on the reverse of the letter); the Q marked the Communion for Corpus Christi. The iconography also contributes to the identification. The sophisticate acanthus staves are typical of early sixteenth century German initials in both illuminated and printed books. The illuminator of our initials, however, was aware of the rules and the power of the Renaissance painting, known in Germany through the masterpieces of Dürer, Cranach and Altdorfer. The atmospheric landscapes characterised by distant silver-blue shapes of mountains, the effect of the movement in the water, the smooth brush, the attention paid to details such as the subtle termination of the stave curled around Christ's tiny foot or the costumes in the Communion scene (the woman's one indicating a date around 1520) make this artist and accomplished painter of the early Renaissance. The Gradual from which our initials came seems to have been lavishly adorned with historiated initials, not just for the introits. This rich project was exceptional and certainly reserved for very important books. Show more