Decorated Initial A, leaf from a gradual

From the Getty Museum record

Placed against a burnished gold background, this brilliantly colored initial *A* is accentuated with small chains of white pearls and delicate filigrees. Mauve, orange, and green rings clasp the letter, which terminates in colorful leaves that extend into playful vegetation along the left margin. The style of painting bears the hallmarks of Lorenzo Monaco’s workshop. The exuberant decorated initial was likely the first page of a gradual, a book containing the music for the Christian Mass. The surrounding page features musical notation on a four-line staff. The red text at the top, known as a rubric, begins the introit, or the song recited when the priest entered and approached the altar.