Leaf from an Antiphonal Choirbook for a Benedictine Nunnery

Title

Leaf from an Antiphonal Choirbook for a Benedictine Nunnery

Date

c. 1350

Format

Description

Ink, color and gold leaf on vellum.
Since the making of manuscripts was consuming and laborious, large choirbooks were created for use in a monastery or cathedral, allowing an entire choir of 20 or more singers to see the music. This beautifully illuminated page from an antiphon (a liturgical chant), with its delicate filigree, rich colors, and brilliant gold leaf, is a fine example of the calligrapher's craft.

Is Part Of

Rare Book Collection, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Library

Page Location

146