BEAUTIFUL MINIATURE FROM A FRENCH BOOK OF HOURS, CIRCA 1475, DEPICTING THE PRESENTATION IN THE TEMPLE

(BOOK OF HOURS). Illuminated leaf from a Book of Hours. Northern France: : circa 1475. One leaf, measuring 4-1/2 by 6 inches, scribed and illuminated on both verso and recto; handsomely silk matted and window framed, entire piece measures 11 by 13 inches. $13,500.

Beautiful illuminated leaf from a Book of Hours depicting the Presentation in the Temple, the traditional scene associated with the hour of None (approximately 3 pm), set within an arched frame surrounded by a beautiful floriated border.

This charming miniature depicts the traditional scene associated with the hour of None, in which the infant Jesus is brought to the Temple in Jerusalem in accordance with Jewish tradition for a ceremony of the redemption of the firstborn. The Virgin, dressed in a blue robe, kneels before the altar while holding a white cloth to receive her child from the high priest Simeon. A female attendant—like the Prophetess Anna—is close by, holding a small basket containing baby doves or pigeons, which are to be sacrificed (in lieu of a much more costly lamb—an option laid out in Leviticus specifically for poorer people). Unlike the female or elderly male assistants sometimes present in this miniature, this one includes a youthful attendant standing in the middle of the background holding a long (sacrificial?) tool. A sense of apprehension is apparent, particularly in the way the Christ Child twists his body in Simeon's arms, reaching towards his mother for comfort, a possible foreshadowing of the future. This attractive miniature was likely executed in the workshop of the so-called Maître François, who ran an atelier in Paris during the years between 1460 and 1480, producing illuminated small and large, sacred and secular. Characteristic of the Master's style are richly colored scenes, interiors depicted with considerable detail, women and children with pale, porcelain complexions in contrast with the darker, weathered flesh tones on the male figures. The image is set in an arched frame surrounded by an elaborate border of acanthus leaves, flowers, and gold bezants on hairline sprays, with four lines of text including an elaborate three-line illuminated initial and a one-line illuminated initial. The verso contains 16 lines of text that feature 5 illuminated initials and four extenders along with a similar if somewhat simplified border along the left side.

A beautiful leaf, handsomely framed.