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Detailed record for King's 5
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| Title |
Biblia Pauperum (a typological picture book) |
| Origin |
Netherlands, N. (The Hague?) |
| Date |
c. 1405 |
| Language |
Latin |
| Script |
Gothic |
| Artists |
The Master of the Hours of Margaret of Cleves (Lisbon, Museum Calouste Gulbenkian, Ms. LA 148). |
| Decoration |
93 miniatures, 3 on every recto, with bust-length portraits of apostles and prophets holding scrolls to each side of the central miniature, in colours and gold. Text in red, blue or gold. Instructions to illuminators in Dutch on some versos. Underdrawings partly visible. |
| Dimensions in mm |
175 x 385 |
| Official foliation |
ff. 31 (+ 2 modern paper flyleaves at the beginning, and 2 at the end) |
| Form |
Parchment codex |
| Binding |
Post-1600. Gold-tooled red leather, stamped with the arms of George I or George II at the centre of both covers, probably middle of the 18th century; gilt edges. |
| Provenance |
? Margaret of Cleves (d. 1411), wife of Albrecht, duke of Bavaria and count of Holland.
Alexander Radclyff, 16th century: inscribed 'alexander Radclyff boke' (f. 1v).
Inscription, 16th-century: 'EH' (f. 17v).
King George I ( b. 1660, d. 1727), and/or King George II (b. 1683, d. 1760): middle of the 18th century royal arms stamped on the covers.
King George III (b. 1738, d. 1820).
Given to the British Museum by King George IV in 1823 as part of the library of King George III. |
| Notes |
Originally, the leaves were folded into three, with the sewing between the 1st and the 2nd miniature, and rubrics announcing the subjects on verso of the 1st miniature), but the manuscript was rebound in its present oblong format with the leaves unfolded. This is the only known surviving manuscript in this format, and is also unique in its painted rather than pen and wash illustrations of the text. |
| Select bibliography |
Walter de Gray Birch and Henry Jenner, Early Drawings and Illuminations: An Introduction to the Study of Illustrated Manuscripts (London: Bagster and Sons, 1879), p. 9.
Edward Maunde Thompson, 'On a Manuscript of the "Biblia Pauperum"', Bibliographica, 3 (1897), 385-406.
J.A. Herbert, Illuminated Manuscripts (London: Methuen, 1911), p. 308.
George F. Warner and Julius P. Gilson, Catalogue of Western Manuscripts in the Old Royal and King’s Collections, 4 vols (London: British Museum, 1921), III: Description of the King’s Manuscripts and Indexes to both Collections, pp. 2-3.
John Henrik Cornell, Biblia Pauperum: A Description and Discussion of the Various MSS. with Facsimiles (Stockholm: [n. pub.], 1925), pp. III, 168-70, pl. 70, and passim.
Charles L. Kuhn, 'Herman Scheerre and English Illumination of the Early Fifteenth Century', Art Bulletin, 22 (1940), 138-56 (p. 144, fig. 34).
L.M.J. Delaissé, A Century of Dutch Manuscript Illumination (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1968), p. 18, figs 113-14.
Janet Backhouse, The Illuminated Manuscript (Oxford: Phaidon, 1979), p. 60, fig. 50.
Adrian Wilson and Joyce Lancaster Wilson, A Medieval Mirror: Speculum humanae salvationis, 1324-1500 (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1984), pl. IV-1 following p. 100.
Sandra L. Hindman, ‘Dutch Manuscript Illumination around 1400: Some Cuttings in Darmstadt (MS 2296),’ in Miscellanea Neerlandica: opstellen voor Dr Jan Deschamps ter gelegenheid van zijn zeventigste verjaardag, ed. by Elly Cockx-Indestege and Frans Hendrickx, 3 vols (Louvain: Peeters, 1987), I, 419-40 (p. 429, nn. 15, 16, p. 436 n. 25).
James H. Marrow, ‘Prolegomena to a New Descriptive Catalogue of Dutch Illuminated Manuscripts,’ in Miscellanea Neerlandica: opstellen voor Dr Jan Deschamps ter gelegenheid van zijn zeventigste verjaardag, Elly Cockx-Indestege and Frans Hendrickx, 3 vols (Louvain: Peeters, 1987), I, 295-309 (p. 296 n. 3, p. 298 n. 10).
The Golden Age of Dutch Manuscript Painting (New York: Braziller, 1990), no. 2, pl. I 2 [exhibition catalogue].
J.P. Gumbert, The Dutch and their Books in the Manuscript Age, The Panizzi Lectures, 1989 (London: British Library, 1990), p. 85 n. 49.
Marta O. Renger, ‘Some Distinctive Utrecht Workshop Procedures around 1400’, in Masters and Miniatures: Proceedings of the Congress on Medieval Manuscript Illumination in the Nothern Netherlands (Utrecht, 10-13 December 1989), ed. by Koert van der Horst and Johann-Christian Klamt (Doornspijk: Davaco, 1991), pp. 315-26 (pp. 316-18, pls 5, 14).
W.C.M. Wüstefeld, Middeleeuwse Boeken van het Catharijneconvent (Zwolle: Waanders, c. 1993), p. 220, n. 11.
Janet Backhouse, James H. Marrow and Gerhard Schmidt, Biblia Pauperum: King’s MS 5, British Library, London (Lucerne: Faksimile Verlag Luzern, 1994) [Facsimile commentary, in English, French and German].
Janet Backhouse, The Illuminated Page: Ten Centuries of Manuscript Painting in the British Library (London: British Library, 1997), no. 120.
Pamela Porter, Medieval Warfare in Manuscripts (London: British Library, 2000), pp. 24, 26.
Michelle Brown, The Holkham Bible: A Facsimile (London, British Library, 2007), p. 14, pl. 8.
Deirdre Jackson, Marvellous to Behold: Miracles in Medieval Manuscripts (London: British Library, 2007), pl. 27.
Scot McKendrick and Kathleen Doyle, Bible Manuscripts: 1400 Years of Scribes and Scripture (London: British Library, 2007), pp. 140-41, fig. 127.
Margaret Scott, Medieval Dress & Fashion (London: British Library, 2007), p. 120, pl. 72. |
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f. 1
Annunciation |
f. 2
Moses |
f. 2
Nativity |
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f. 3
Adoration of the Magi |
f. 4
David |
f. 4
Jacob |
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f. 4
Flight into Egypt |
f. 5
The Fall of Idols |
f. 5
Golden Calf |
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f. 5
The Fall of the Idols |
f. 5
Idols |
f. 6
Penitence |
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f. 7
Expulsion of the Traders |
f. 8
Resurrection of a boy |
f. 8
Raising of Lazarus |
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f. 9
Entry into Jerusalem |
f. 10
Manna |
f. 10
Last Supper |
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f. 11
Selling of Christ |
f. 12
Betrayal |
f. 12
The Betrayal |
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f. 13
Christ before Pilate |
f. 14
Conspiracy to kill Christ |
f. 15
Mocking of Christ |
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f. 17
Crucifixion |
f. 17
Raising of a serpent |
f. 17
Serpent |
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f. 18
Moses |
f. 20
Resurrection |
f. 20
Jonah |
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f. 20
Resurrection |
f. 21
Harrowing of Hell |
f. 21
David and Goliath |
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f. 21
Harrowing of Hell |
f. 21
Samson |
f. 22
Holy Women at the Tomb |
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f. 23
Appearance to Mary |
f. 23
Daniel |
f. 23
Noli me tangere |
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f. 23
Bride |
f. 24
Appearance to the disciples |
f. 25
Incredulity of Thomas |
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f. 26
Ascension |
f. 27
Elijah |
f. 27
Pentecost |
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f. 27
Elijah |
f. 28
Coronation of the Virgin |
f. 29
Last Judgement |
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f. 30
Joys |
f. 30
Job's children |
f. 30
Joys of the Blessed |
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f. 30
Jacob's ladder |
f. 31
Hell |
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