Prayer Book of Charles the Bold

Prayer Book of Charles the Bold

Among all of the gorgeous, precious manuscripts produced by Flemish book art, the Prayer Book of Charles the Bold occupies a key position. It is an absolute principle work of the Renaissance. On 318 vellum pages, the small codex contains 47 miniatures and over 360 embellished initials against a background of engraved gold. Embellished with exuberant gold adornment, the work was elucidated by Charles’ favorite illuminator, Lieven van Lathem and his famous calligrapher Nicolas Spierinc and was furnished with numerous initials adorned with floral or figurative depictions. Three portraits of the commissioner attest to the very personal relationship Charles had with his prayer book.

A Masterpiece for the Burgundian Court

Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, was a vibrant personality. He was simultaneously the last and the most famous duke from the house of Valois-Burgundy. The Burgundian Court became one of the most magnificent ruling seats in all of Europe during the reign of Charles. He was a passionate benefactor of the arts and has gone down in history as a lover of luxury and collector of great artistic treasures. Charles had numerous codices completed that were begun during the reign of his father Philipp the Good. As a patron, he was extremely demanding with respect to the works that were made for him. His inclination towards magnificence is reflected in his prayer book. Every page of the small book shows the splendor of Flemish illumination in an imaginative variety.

Flemish Book Art in its Utmost Perfection

During the time of the booklet’s creation, the Belgian region of Flanders near Paris was the creative center of illumination in Europe. The Belgian illuminators were able to successfully bring tender, natural observations such as unbelievably realistic facial features and gestures in representations of people to paper. With their innovative ideas and new artistic incentives, they inspired such great Dutch panel painters such as Jan van Eyck and Rogier van der Weyden, who were revolutionizing painting worldwide during the same period. Lieven van Lathem – court painter to Philipp the Good, his son Charles the Bold, and eventually Kaiser Maximillian as well – was one of the leading Flemish illuminators of that time. He was a valued member of the Illuminator’s Guild of Ghent and was later accepted into the famous St. Luke’s Guild in Antwerp. His atmospheric landscapes and made him a model for countless successive artists. He presented his talent in the small prayer book in a breath-taking manner. For the design of the precious work, he was supported by several additional masters, who exact identity cannot be proved with certainty. Yet one of them must have been the so-called Vienna Master of Maria of Burgundy. Researchers speculate that Alexander Benning, the father of the famous artist Simon Benning, hid behind this pseudonym. He is responsible for the design of the fine, animated figures and lively faces in the prayer book.

An Enchanting Story in Pictures

The Prayer Book of Charles the Bold contains 47 miniatures in an exuberantly colorful splendor and are embellished with gold. The pictures demonstrate the limitless imagination and narrative joy of their illuminators. There is imaginative bordure adornment on nearly every page of the work. Acanthus vines and other growing plants in lively, luminous colors with gold flowers, countless depictions of fantastical creatures, people, and animals all enliven the page margins. Alongside these enchanting depictions, three royal portraits of the commissioner, Charles, are to be found in the book. These portraits corroborate the personal nature of the prayer book. The text of the manuscript is also richly illuminated. The meticulously-written script was arranged through the 360 initials against at least partially tooled gold backgrounds.