Great Canterbury Psalter

Great Canterbury Psalter

In the French National Library there is a psalter which is exceptional in every way, in which two works from different epochs are combined in one grandiose codex. The Great Canterbury Psalter, which contains the three Latin versions of the Psalms attributed to St. Jerome, was partly produced in England and partly in Spain. The exciting work of art contains over 140 miniatures by first class book masters, who depict the prevailing conceptual world of their time in pictures. Numerous decorative initials and gold embellishments additionally decorate the text.

Various Stylistic Directions

The fascinating Great Canterbury Psalter is a work that consists of two parts, which were produced at completely different times. The first part arose in English Canterbury ca. 1200. The second part was produced around 150 years later in Catalonia. This temporal difference between both parts is clearly discernable in the illustrations of the work. The English originates from a time in which Late Romanesque painting was being gradually supplanted by the painting of the world of Gothic. The full-page miniatures and charming initials show influences from the masterworks of Late Gothic book art. The Catalonian part of the manuscript is oriented on 14th century Italian painting. Both parts of the books are of excellent quality and reflect new artistic ideas alongside classical traditions.

The Adventurous History of the Psalter

Medieval psalters were concerned with collections of the Psalms, which are attributed to King David. They usually served purposes of private study. The special Great Canterbury Psalter was nevertheless a work, for which its owners enjoyed astonishment and admiration. The owners came from the highest ranks of each epoch and are to be sought among the most influential rulers. Soon after its production, the incomplete manuscript went from England to Spain and came into the possession of Duke Jean de Valois. It was later purchased by Princess Margarete of Austria. This she left to her niece, Queen Mary of Hungary. In 1809, it received a new binding in Paris in the reign of Napoleon I. The manuscript is still found in Paris today.

Noteworthy Book Art

The miniatures of the psalter are shaped in a special manner after each Psalm. The pictures are always divided into several scenes and show a variety of high quality colors. Most are laid against a carmine red background and are adorned with filigreed and polished gold leaf. The second part of the manuscript was demonstrably illustrated by the studio of Ferrer and Arnau Bassas, two of the great Spanish book painters of the Middle Ages. The stylistic influences from various epochs and lands make the illuminated manuscript a unique work of art worldwide.