Getty Museum

Initial B: David Playing the Harp and David and Goliath

Date

about 1250–1260

Medium

Tempera colors, gold leaf, and ink

Culture

French

Department

Manuscripts

Institution

Getty Museum

The opening letter *B* dominates this page beginning the psalms. The succeeding letters of the first word of Psalm 1 follow in gold on the colored bands at the top and bottom: *Beat[us] vir q[u]i n[on] abiit* (Blessed is the man who does not walk ...). Two scenes from the life of King David, the supposed author of the psalms, occupy the large initial *B*. In the page's bottom half, the youthful David faces the Philistine soldier Goliath. David's victory over Goliath led to King Saul's jealousy, which caused the king to attack David as the boy played the harp, as pictured in the top half of the letter. The lozenges and roundels around the perimeter of the design contain smaller scenes from David's life.

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