MASTER OF THE APOCALYPSE OF AYMAR DE POITIERS (Savoy, active c. 1480–1490)
Book of Hours, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on parchment [France, Dauphiné, perhaps Grenoble, c. 1480–1485]

Custom-made manuscript with richly illuminated narrative borders and vibrant full-page miniatures.

ii (paper) + 153 + ii (modern parchment) + ii (paper) folios on parchment, missing one leaf with a miniature at the beginning of Terce of the Hours of the Virgin (before f. 45), otherwise complete [collation: i⁸, ii¹⁰, iii–v⁸, vi⁷ (of 8, lacking iii), vii⁸, viii¹⁰, ix–xviii⁸, xix⁶ (of 8, with last two leaves of quire cancelled)], catchwords for all quires except three (quires 1, 2, and 18), text written in a formal Gothic bookhand in brown ink on eighteen long lines, ruled in red (justification: 81–85 × 59 mm), rubrics in red, text capitals touched in yellow, line-endings alternately in red and blue, decorated with brushed gold, one-line initials in burnished gold against blue or red grounds, two-line initials in burnished gold against grounds of blue or red with white penwork decoration, except on ff. 143–152, where two-line initials are alternately in white and gray against grounds of brushed gold, or in brushed gold against grounds of red with gold penwork decoration, five-line initials below miniatures on ff. 42, 48, and 50 in brushed gold or silver (now oxidized) with infill of painted flowers, remaining five-line initials in red or blue highlighted with white tracery decoration against burnished gold grounds with infill of colored ivy leaves, TWO HISTORIATED INITIALS, one accompanied by a decorative staff (f. 116), the other echoed by A SMALL MINIATURE set off to the right and flanked by a panel border of colored acanthus leaves and flowers against a burnished gold ground, with, in the center, a branch with a belt and coat of arms (“azure a bend dancetty or”) (f. 144), FOUR SMALL MINIATURES set within rectangular illuminated frames of flowers, fruits, and colored ivy leaves on burnished gold grounds, THIRTEEN LARGE MINIATURES set within decorated rectangular frames alternately composed of colored acanthus leaves, naturalistic flowers and fruits, or ivy leaves, including four accompanied by full illuminated historiated borders containing accessory scenes (ff. 28, 68, 76, 92), text slightly rubbed in places, overall in excellent condition, miniatures brilliantly preserved. Bound in a late nineteenth- or early twentieth-century imitation binding of blind-tooled brown morocco, spine sewn on five thongs, inner pastedowns and recto of first flyleaves lined with maroon silk, gilt edges, manuscript housed in a red silk wraparound case fitted into a dark red morocco slipcase. Dimensions 152 × 113 mm.

Provenance
(1) The calendar includes many unusual features: Bridget (2 February), Arnulphus of Metz (18 July), Trophimus, bishop of Arles (19 September), the Conception of St. John the Baptist (25 September), Gall (17 October), and Hugo (18 November), none of these in red. There are two especially rare feasts. The first is that of St. Peter, Archbishop of Tarentaise (12 September), who was born near Vienne in the Dauphiné, France, and eventually became the first abbot of Tamié in the Tarentaise Mountains between Geneva and Savoy. The second is that of St. Tygris (in red, 25 June), the Virgin who brought a relic of the finger of John the Baptist to Savoy and whose own relics are housed in Maurienne in the region. There is also the Dedication of the Church of Saint John the Baptist on 15 October for the Cathedral of Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne in Savoy. This localization likewise accounts for the rare feast of the Conception of St. John the Baptist.The arms that occur beside a miniature of St. Bridget in prayer and below a miniature of Bridget’s vision of the Crucifixion at the beginning of the Fifteen O’s of St. Bridget, Azure, a bend dancetty or, are evidently those of the La Baume family. Originally from Bresse, this family was one of the most important noble houses of Savoy. They counted among their members a marshal and admiral of Savoy, a tutor to the Count of Savoy, a viceroy of Naples, and others. The addition of the dancetty bend to the shield was reserved for the branch of the La Baume family known as the Lords of Mont-Saint-Sorlin and Counts of Montrevel. Two individuals emerge as possible candidates for the patronage of the present manuscript: Jean III de La Baume, Count of Montrevel (b. 1440, d. 1491), counselor and chamberlain to the Duke of Burgundy and later to Kings Louis XI and Charles VIII; or Guillaume de La Baume, Lord of Illeins (d. 1490), chamberlain to the Duke of Burgundy, who later became Governor of Bresse for the Duke of Savoy. Guillaume’s arms were differenced by a star, as demonstrated by two manuscripts he owned (Paris, Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève, MSS 20–21). The undifferenced arms found here may therefore belong to Jean III de La Baume, Count of Montrevel.

(2) Private European Collection.

Text
ff. 1–12v, Calendar (see above); ff. 13–13v, Prayer to the Virgin, rubric, Salutacio devota ad gloriosam virginem Mariam, incipit, “Ave celorum regina”; ff. 14–17v, Gospel Extracts from John, Luke (f. 15), Matthew (f. 16v), and Mark (f. 18); ff. 18–66v, Hours of the Virgin, use of Rome, with Matins (f. 18), Lauds (f. 33), Prime (f. 42), [lacking Terce], Sext (f. 48), None (f. 50), Vespers (f. 53), and Compline (f. 57); ff. 60–60v, Prayer, “Salve regina”; ff. 60v–65v, Advent Office of the Virgin; ff. 66–67v, Prayer to the Virgin, rubric, Sequitur salutacio devota ad virginem Mariam, incipit, “Ave fuit prima salus / Qua vincitur hostis malus…”; ff. 67–70v, Hours of the Cross; ff. 71–75v, Hours of the Holy Spirit; ff. 76–91v, Seven Penitential Psalms and Litany (beginning f. 85v); ff. 92–115, Office of the Dead, use of Rome; ff. 116–119, Obsecro te, masculine forms; ff. 119v–120v, Seven Verses of Saint Bernard; ff. 120v–121v, Seven Prayers of Saint Gregory, or Five Prayers before the Cross (here only five prayers, but none missing as indicated by the rubric), rubric, Quicunque orationes sequentes dixerit cotidie ante crucem domini nostri Ihesu Christi…, incipit, “O domine Ihesu Christe adoro te in cruce pendentem”; ff. 122–139, Miscellaneous prayers in Latin, including ff. 122–129v, Prayers to Jesus Christ, beginning “O dulcissime domine Ihesu Christe…”; ff. 129v–131v, Prayers to the Virgin, beginning “Excellentissima gloriosissima atque sacratissima virgo…”; ff. 131v–139, Prayers to Jesus Christ, beginning “Domine Ihesu Christe fili Dei…”; ff. 139–140v, Prayer for the Deceased, with papal indulgence for those who recite it, rubric, Papa Iohannes duodecimus concessit omnibus transeuntibus…, incipit, “Avete omnes anime Christi fideles…”; ff. 140v–141, Prayers to the Body of Christ, rubric, Sequitur oratio dicenda ad elevationem corporis Christi; ff. 141–142, Prayers for the Elevation of the Body of Christ, rubric, Cuilibet devote dicenti orationem sequentem ad elevationem corporis Christi…; ff. 143–144, Gregory on the Five Wounds of Christ (with papal indulgences), rubric, Sanctus Gregorius dum esset summus pontifex et missam celebraret… Incipit prima oratio, incipit, “Ave dextera manus Christi…”; ff. 144–152v, Fifteen O’s of Saint Bridget, rubric following the text, Rubrica oracionum sancte Brigide. Hec sunt quindecim collecte sive orationes illius preclarissime virginis beate Brigide…

Illumination
This jewel-like Book of Hours is a refined example of the work of the Master of the Apocalypse of Aymar de Poitiers (Maître de l’Apocalypse d’Aymar de Poitiers), one of the most distinctive illuminators active in the Dauphiné during the final decades of the fifteenth century. First identified and named by François Avril after the celebrated Apocalypse manuscript made for Aymar de Poitiers, Count of Valentinois (Glasgow, University Library, Hunter MS 398), the artist has since emerged as the central figure of a small but coherent group of richly illuminated manuscripts localized to the region of Grenoble around the 1480s (see Avril 2011, pp. 212–16).
The core of this group is formed by a series of single leaves from a lavishly illuminated Book of Hours (Musée du Louvre, M. 1083A–E, and related leaves), a Book of Hours now in Lyon (Bibliothèque municipale, MS 579), a Psalter-Hours (present whereabouts unknown), and the eponymous Apocalypse in Glasgow. Several of these manuscripts preserve important evidence for localization: the Lyon Hours bears the arms of the Allemand (or Allaman) family, Lords of La Rochechinard in the Dauphiné; the Psalter-Hours preserves pastedowns containing notarial acts connected with an individual from the Grenoble region, as well as the date 1484; and the Glasgow Apocalypse was made for the renowned bibliophile Aymar de Poitiers, Grand Seneschal of Provence from 1484, whose family maintained strong connections in the Dauphiné. Together, this evidence places the workshop most probably in Grenoble, midway between Avignon and Lyon, during the mid-1480s. The strong Savoyard associations found in the calendar and heraldry of the present manuscript demonstrate that the workshop also supplied books for elite patrons in neighboring Savoy.

Jewel-like, densely saturated colors are among the defining characteristics of manuscripts associated with this master, as are the elaborate narrative borders that surround the principal miniatures. Diminutive figures, their draperies generously heightened with liquid gold, populate carefully constructed landscapes beneath deep blue skies. Faces are frequently distinguished by delicate modeling and bright red lips. Where the illuminator employs ornamental rather than narrative borders, the brilliant colors of the floral and foliate decoration take on an almost enamel-like quality against the burnished gold surfaces.

The subjects of the thirteen large miniatures are: f. 18, Annunciation, with marginal scenes set within architectural frames (reading from lower left to upper right): the Annunciation to Joachim, the Meeting at the Golden Gate, the Birth of the Virgin, the Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple, the Holy Family, the Virgin spinning, and the Marriage of the Virgin; f. 33, Visitation, with two angels attending the Virgin; f. 42, Nativity; f. 47v, Adoration of the Magi; f. 50, Flight into Egypt; f. 53, Presentation in the Temple; f. 57v, Coronation of the Virgin; f. 67, Crucifixion, with marginal scenes (from lower left to upper right): the Mocking of Christ, the Flagellation, the Crowning with Thorns, the Carrying of the Cross, and the Nailing of Christ to the Cross; f. 71, Pentecost; f. 76, King David Praying to God, with marginal scenes (from lower left to upper right): David playing the harp before Saul, David watching Bathsheba bathing, David giving orders to Uriah’s captain, and the death of Uriah (?); f. 92, Burial Scene, with marginal scenes (from lower left to upper right): Job praying to God, Job visited by his friends, Job on the dung heap scourged by devils, Job taunted by his friends, and Job mocked by his wife, who is dressed in contemporary fashion of the 1480s; f. 121, Pietà with Mary Magdalene and Saint John; f. 142v, Mass of Saint Gregory.

The subjects of the small miniatures are: f. 14, Saint John on Patmos; f. 15v, Saint Luke writing; f. 16v, Saint Matthew writing; f. 17, Saint Mark writing; f. 116, Virgin and Child (historiated initial); f. 144, Bridget’s Vision of the Crucifixion, with Christ appearing on the Cross to Saint Bridget in prayer (historiated initial with accompanying small miniature).

LITERATURE
Published: François Avril, Nicole Reynaud, and Dominique Cordellier, eds., Les Enluminures du Louvre: Moyen Âge et Renaissance, Paris, 2011, pp. 212–16; Related literature: Nigel Thorp, The Glory of the Page: Medieval and Renaissance Illuminated Manuscripts from Glasgow University Library, London, 1987; Agostino Paravicini Bagliani, ed., Les Manuscrits enluminés des comtes et ducs de Savoie, introduction by Enrico Castelnuovo, Turin, 1990 (see especially Sheila Edmunds, pp. 193–230); Christopher de Hamel, Gilding the Lilly: A Hundred Medieval and Illuminated Manuscripts in the Lilly Library, Bloomington, 2010, no. 84, pp. 184–85; Alix Buisseret, “La Savoie,” in Peindre en France : Trente ans de recherche sur les manuscrits à peintures (1440–1520), ed. Frédéric Elsig, Samuel Gras, and Dominique Vanwijnsberghe, Milan, 2025, pp. 348–61.

We thank Senior Consultant Sandra Hindman and Peter Bovenmyer for their assistance in preparing this sale.

This lot is located in Chicago.

MASTER OF THE APOCALYPSE OF AYMAR DE POITIERS (Savoy, active c. 1480–1490) Book of Hours, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on parchment [France, Dauphiné, perhaps Grenoble, c. 1480–1485]

MASTER OF THE APOCALYPSE OF AYMAR DE POITIERS (Savoy, active c. 1480–1490)
Book of Hours, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on parchment [France, Dauphiné, perhaps Grenoble, c. 1480–1485]