Rothschild Prayerbook - Illuminations

Illuminations

It contains the work of several leading miniaturists of the final flowering of the Ghent-Bruges school of Flemish illumination, who also co-operated on the Grimani Breviary, the Spinola Hours (Malibu) and other major manuscripts of these years. Most of the sixty-seven large miniatures are by the "Master of the First Prayerbook of Maximilian", an older artist, and Gerard Horenbout or the Master of James IV of Scotland (these being two names probably for the same artist). Other miniatures are by Gerard David, better known as a panel painter, or a pupil working in his style, with two miniatures by Simon Bening, and other work by further masters.

There are wide borders, many with flowers and other objects and drolleries, and another group with trompe l'oeil imitations of bronzes. Other borders frame the miniature with illusionisticly painted wooden tracery. Some pages follow the fashion of showing one scene as a framed inset within another larger one, In total 140 pages, over half of the whole book, have significant decoration outside the text. The calendar has scenes of the Labours of the Months at the bottom of the pages. As with other very lavishly illuminated manuscripts, it was probably worked on over a long period.