Description
Exclusive facsimile limited edition containing 12 leaves from Musée Condé, Ms. 65, titled Die Monatsblätter des Kalenders and edited by Faksimile Verlag (1994) featuring:
- Edition details: Die Monatsblätter des Kalenders – Munich: Faksimile Verlag, 1994
- Commentary: German, French and English abstract/description of each leaf
- Notes: the collection contains 12 miniatures from the Calendar section of the masterpiece Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry. The leaves are presented in passe-partout.
- Case: a linen-covered box decorated with the arms of the bibliophile duke contains both leaves, presented in passe-partout, and a lavishly illustrated booklet.
About Musée Condé, Ms. 65
Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry ranks among the most famous and precious books of the world and its miniatures among the most beautiful of the Middle Ages. The script is of extreme beauty and clarity and richly decorated with initials and ornamental borders. However, the main feature of this manuscript, which has brought its international renown, are above all the marvellous miniatures in the manner of panel paintings. The artists who participated in the execution of this magnificent book are well known: the Limbourg brothers and Jean Colombe were great masters of their times. Executed between 1410 and 1485 this unique work with its innovatory spirit and bold artistic approach clearly outdid everything hitherto known.
The Duke of Berry entrusted the Limbourg brothers, who had worked in the bibliophile’s services since 1404, with the execution of this manuscript. The art of the brothers Pol, Herman and Jean Limbourg was unique, its special character forbidding any imitation. Their work always represented and still remains to this day a landmark of Occidental painting. However, after their sudden death in 1416, the manuscript was left incomplete. The manuscript remained unfinished for quite some time until in 1485 Jean Colombe continued to work on it on the initiative of the Duke of Savoy. The artist clearly admired the Limbourg brother’s style but refused to imitate it and developed his own style in accordance with the currents of his times. The calendar leaves in particular have not yet been fully attributed to a particular artist. Art historians speak of another “intermediary painter” who could have completed some of the calendar illustrations around 1440, however this theory has never been fully confirmed.
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