Flemish Book of Hours, Use of Utrecht. Manuscript on Parchment.
Utrecht, Netherlands, mid-15th century.
Small format manuscript prayerbook written in the Flemish language consisting of 168 of 186 parchment leaves (lacking 18 leaves; 6 integral blanks present at the end) organized in 24 gatherings all but four in 8's; St. Odulph's name is included in the litany of the saints and is in red on the calendar for his feast day in June, suggesting ties to the city of Utrecht; text in Flemish throughout, written in a gothic script in brown ink with initials added in red and blue; decorated with 9 larger initials ranging from 4 to 8 lines; gilt initials on red and pink backgrounds embellished with white tracery designs; a few larger initials with added marginal decoration at head and tail of the sheet incorporating flower forms and other vegetal twining decoration (gold and colors with surface losses to flaking); excised leaves presumably removed for their decorative value; bound in full 17th or 18th century calf; spine perished, boards detached, a good candidate for restoration; all edges gilt; some leaves at the end with smudged ink; lacking blanks before the first leaf of the calendar; unidentified likely 19th century bookseller's description trimmed and tacked inside front board, an early inked price, no other firm provenance clues; 4 x 3 in.
