Rare illuminated manuscripts - Legenda Aurea

I love watching auctions - and there are some amazing things being sold online when you care to surf around. For instance, I came across this auction for a Legenda aurea rare manuscript with 224 initials - and decided to take a further look.

The manuscript at hand is an edition of Jacobus de Voragine's Legenda Aurea. This collection of legends about the life of numerous saints, written between 1263 and 1273, is seen today as the most famous and most popular chapbook of the Middle Ages. The saints vita's were collocated along the ecclesiastical year. They were provided with substantial explanations of the great holidays Christmas, Epiphany, Easter, Ascension Day, Pentecost and of the liturgical customs. This way, the book does not only serve as a daily edification, but also as a “manual for reflection and contemplation” during the feast days.

Local legends were often extended to the saints' legends written by Jacobus de Voragine too. Between the leaves 256-289 verso, you will find some early enlargements, for example first Saint Lazarus' legend (lvs. 256-258), and beginning with leaf 274, you find a study about Thomas the Apostle.

The text is written in two constant columns, each of them with 40 lines. The text area is very constant too with 8,4 x 5,7 inches. The smooth preparatory drawings of four vertical and 41 horizontal lines are sometimes readily identifiable. The script was written roundly in gothic letters with dark brown ink.

Further, the seller states -

The gorgeously large Fleuronée-initials are especially striking. They are often stretched out over three lines, but some of them even over fourteen lines. A gorgeous initial is as large as a whole page. The initials are alternative red and blue. Red initials are decorated with blue patterns, the blue ones are decorated with copious red patterns. The letters are filled with embellishments, leafages and ornaments. At the same time several slightly curved embellishments are stretched out right over the space and accompany the columns and the edges. These embellishments often capture the edge of a whole page. The stylishly in red and blue coloured letters stand in a beautiful contrast to the nice, framing patterns. Together, they build a nice unity. Each of the sophisticated jewel initials is an outstanding example for the art of book painting in the Middle Ages. In addition, the text is continuously rubricated and structured with numerous red and blue coloured break tags and with several chapers's indication.

Jacobus de Voragine (around 1230 – 1298) was born in the region of Genua. He became a member of the Dominican order in early life. After his education within the fraternity and his studies at the university of Bologna, he became a professor of theology in 1260. Beside teaching in his order's schools, where he was well known due to his rhetoric talents, he was also an itinerant preacher on the whole Italian peninsula. Between 1267 and 1278 and 1281 and 1286 he was provincial superior of the Lombardy. In 1288, finally, he was elected as Genua's archbishop. The Legenda Aurea is Jacobus Voragine's most famous and most important work: it became an important source for veneration of saintin the Middle Ages and later on .

All in all, this is a very rare manuscript from the 14th century. It's presumably the most famous and most influential work of the Middle Ages'. Especially, the manuscript's exceedingly gorgeous illustrations with more than 220 Fleuronnée-initials give this manuscript a unique character and make it worthy to collect!!

I can't begin to imagine owning something this old and this stunning - but now that my interest has been piqued, I am going to watch further auctions for rare illuminated manuscripts.