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Hours of Philip the Bold

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Hours of Philip the Bold

The Hours of Philip the Bold is a late 14th-century illuminated book of hours produced in Paris for Philip the Bold, Duke of Burgundy (1363-1404). It contains illustrated calendars, figured initials and 11 large miniatures with ivy borders, following the Paris liturgy. It is now MS. 3-1954 in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.

Philip reportedly recited his daily prayers from this manuscript. With almost 200 images, his hours is among the most "sophisticated manuscripts to survive from the library of the Burgundian Dukes."

The manuscript was largely produced in two stages. The first was commenced in 1376 and paid for in 1379, with a few supplementary texts and images added in 1390. Production was left to artisans of the Parisian community who also worked for the Duke's brother, King Charles V of France. The Hours were completed in 1451 by Flemish artists for Philip's grandson, Philip the Good (1419-67). Philip the Good rebound the large manuscript in two volumes; the first held by Fitzwilliam Museum, has all 150 images of Philip the Bold's commission with seventeen illuminations from the 15th century. The second volume held in Brussels (Bibliothèque royale de Belgique, MS 11035-37) consists only of 15th-century images.

Artists involved in the creation of the hours include Master of the Bible of Jean de Sy (fr), Master of the Grandes Heures, Master of the Throne of Mercy, Master of the Coronation Book of Charles V with assistance from Willem Vrelant, Jean Le Tavernier, Dreux Jean (fr) and others.

References

Hours of Philip the Bold Wikipedia