Cleveland Museum of Art

Hours of Charles the Noble, King of Navarre (1361-1425): fol. 29r,The Annunciation (Matins)

Master of the Brussels Initials and Associates

Date: c. 1405
Medium: ink, tempera, and gold on vellum
Culture: France, Paris
Department: Medieval Art
Institution: Cleveland Museum of Art

This precious volume was obviously highly prized by its owner, the French-born King of Navarre, who had his coat of arms painted on no less than 20 folios. Rather than directly commissioning this manuscript from a specific workshop, it seems that Charles the Noble acquired his book of hours—perhaps made for the luxury market—while on a trip to Paris in 1404–5. A collaborative effort, six painting styles are seen within the pages of this codex, those of two Italians, two Frenchmen, and two Netherlanders. The painter who was responsible for the planning and decoration of the book, and who produced 17 of the large miniatures, was a Bolognese artist known as the Master of the Brussels Initials.

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