Freeman’s Presents its Most Significant Western Manuscripts And Miniatures Sale to Date

Featuring Illuminated Leaves, Codices, and Distinguished European Collection

Lot 25 | ORIGEN OF ALEXANDRIA (c. 185–253) Homilia in Genesim, Homiliae in Exodum, in Latin, translation by Rufinus, decorated manuscript on parchment [Austria, Lambach Abbey? c. 1150–1175] | Estimate: $150,000 - $200,000

Prominent European Collections Head to Auction  

 
At the core of the sale are two distinguished collections of richly illuminated Books of Hours, assembled by prominent European bibliophiles in Switzerland and Germany. These collections showcase works attributed to some of the most celebrated artists and workshops of the late medieval period, including the Master of the Beaufort Saints, the Rosenberg Master, the Master of Lee Hours, the Master of Buchanan E.5, and a close collaborator of Willem Vrelant. 

Among the most important highlights is the Missal of Jean d'Amboise (Lot 51, estimate: $100,000-$120,000), a rare, illuminated manuscript commissioned for Jean I d'Amboise, peer of France and bishop-duke of Langres (1482–1497). As one of the few surviving witnesses to manuscript illumination in late fifteenth-century Champagne, the missal offers remarkable insight into the region's artistic production during this period. 

An additional standout is a spectacular illustrated Romanesque manuscript, almost certainly produced at Lambach Abbey (Lot 25, estimate: $150,000 - $200,000), a foundational center of medieval art, culture, and intellectual life. This beautifully preserved volume—containing Origen’s homilies on Genesis and Exodus—features extensive illustration, including a full-page miniature, and retains its original medieval binding bearing the abbey’s historic shelf mark. 

Text Manuscripts and Leaves  

 
Lot 20 | WORKSHOP OF SAN DOMENICO (DECORATOR B) (active Bologna, first quarter of the 14th century) | Leaf with a historiated initial ‘D’ of Saint John the Baptist from a Gradual, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on parchment [Italy, Bologna, c. 1310–1330] | Estimate: $15,000 - $17,000 

The sale also includes notable text manuscripts, such as a twelfth-century work by Peter the Venerable (Lot 29, estimate: $15,000 - $20,000) on heretics, formerly in the collection of the esteemed medievalist Giles Constable (d. 2021), one of only three known copies of an important work by Peter the Venerable and from the celebrated library of Parc Abbey. 

Leading the selection of leaves is an outstanding group from Robert McCarthy's celebrated collection. Previously published and widely recognized, these Romanesque and early Gothic works include illuminated sheets and cuttings from monumental Atlantic Bibles, a rare Mozarabic Spanish miniature (Lot 6, estimate: $9,500 - $11,500) with related examples held in major museum collections, and an Italian cutting from the Lives of the Saints attributed to the Master of Monza (Lot 14, estimate: $10,000 - $12,000). 

Together, the works in this sale reflect the breadth, artistry, and enduring significance of medieval manuscript production, offering collectors and institutions a rare opportunity to acquire works of exceptional quality, provenance, and historical importance. 

Additional Auction Highlights 

• Lot 32 | PINK CANOPIES GROUP (Bruges, active c. 1390-1400) with ENGLISH ILLUMINATOR | Book of Hours, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on parchment [Southern Netherlands, Bruges ?, c. 1390–1400 and England c. 1400] 
  Estimate: $120,000 - $150,000 
   

• Lot 36 | MASTER OF THE LEE HOURS (Ghent and Bruges, active c. 1450-1470) | The “de Saulx” Hours, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on parchment [Southern Netherlands, Bruges, c. 1460] 
  Estimate: $90,000 - $100,000 
   

• Lot 49 | 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] 
  Estimate: $85,000 - $95,000 

How to Bid 

Western Manuscripts and Miniatures will be offered on July 9 at 10 AM CT in Freeman’s Chicago saleroom. Bidding will be available in person, over the phone, and via absentee or live online bidding.