Stony Brook University Libraries Digital Projects and Exhibits

Items

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  Psalter: Psalterium

  Leaf 42. "This leaf from the Book of Psalms was written from the Benedictine monastery of St. Stephan in Wurzburg and dated 1499 A.D. The book hand closely resembles the fine early gothic types called lettre de forme and used by Fust and Schoeffer in their superb Psalter issued in 1457" (Ege). "A close examination indicates that the scribe apparently tried to imitate printing type characters in many instances."
  Original medium: Manuscript
  Date: 15th c.
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  Psalter: Psalterium

  Leaf 34. "This Psalter was written by Carthusian monks. Of all the orders the Carthusian was the smallest and most austere" (Ege). "The rotunda book hand used in this leaf is representative of the general excellence maintained by Italian scribes at the time when printing was being introduced into their country." "Close observation of the initial letters will frequently reveal a small black letter inserted as a guide for the monk who later added the colored initial. The use of two guide lines for the lettering is unusual. Ordinarily one line, below the writing, was deemed sufficient. The lines were drawn with a stylus composed of two parts lead and one part tin."
  Original medium: Manuscript
  Date: 15th c.
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  Psalter: Psalterium

  Leaf 25. "In the earlier periods there was generally a harmonious unity between the spirit of the ornament and the character of the writing. This unity is exemplified in this leaf. The three-lobed, gracefully drawn symmetrical fronds of leaves in the ornament are usually accepted without question as representing the ivy plant. In the Middle Ages many magical and medicinal qualities were attributed to this plant" (Ege). "Some pages of this manuscript book show the effect of having been exposed to dampness."
  Original medium: Manuscript
  Date: 14th c.
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  Psalter: Psalterium

  Leaf 20. "Small Psalters of this period are comparatively rare, since Pslaters were used primarily in the church services and not by the layman. Here, the letters and ornament still retain all the rigidity of the previous century and give no indication of the rounder type of letter or any beginning of the interest in nature that characterized the work of the scribes in France. The filigree decoration, as well as the line-fishing elements, show, however, more creative freedom than either the initial or the text letters" (Ege).
  Original medium: Manuscript
  Date: 14th c.
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  Psalter: Psalterium

  Leaf 17. "Illuminated Psalters occur as early as the VIIIth century, and from the XIth to the beginning of the XIVth century they predominate among illuminated manuscripts." "At this time the pendant tails of the initial letters are rigid or only slightly wavy, with a few leaves springing from the ends" (Ege). "The blue and lake (orange-red) color scheme with accents of white is a carry-over from the Westminster tradition which prevailed in the previous century.The solid line-filling ornaments of the verses were a new feature added in the second half of the XIIIth century. Silver and alloys of gold are used on this leaf."
  Original medium: Manuscript
  Date: 13th c.
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  Psalter: Psalterium

  Leaf 12. "This small Psalter leaf illustrates the fact that, although skilled scribes were available in many monasteries in the XIIIth century, some of the monks who attempted to apply and burnish the gold leaf were still struggling with many problems of illumination. The famous treatise De Arte Illuminandi and Cennino Cennini's Trattato were both of a later date. These works gave directions on how to prepare and use the glair of egg, Armeninan bole, stag-horn glue, and hare's foot, and on how to burnish gold with a suitable wolf's tooth" (Ege).
  Original medium: Manuscript
  Date: 13th c.
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  Psalter: Psalterium

  Leaf 10. "The line endings of a fish, elongated or shortened as the space required, and the grinning expression of the fish emblem have in some book circles given these German Psalters the nickname "Laughing Carp" Psalters" (Ege). "The lozenge heads on top of many of the vertical pen strokes are characteristic of German manuscripts."
  Original medium: Manuscript
  Date: 13th c.
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  Psalter: Psalterium

  Leaf 4. "This text is from a special arrangment of the Psalms.""The author of the arrangment represented by this leaf is unknown" (Ege). "The words which were inserted in the margin are not corrections but were added as guides to the content of the page."
  Original medium: Manuscript
  Date: 12th c.