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Calendar (Month of October)

F-zlpg

Utopia, armarium codicum bibliophilorum, Private Collection, Canada, Fr.G1-4

Private Catalogue, Canada, 2023. (Born Digital)

General Information

Title Calendar (Month of October)
Material Parchment
Place of Origin Venice, Italy

Current Condition

Dimensions 109 x 78 mm

Book Decoration and Musical Notation

Description

Illumination is concentrated on the recto, where the letters KL (kalends) are illuminated with gold, purple, and blue. The illuminated letters are bordered on the top and left sides with gold bezants, purple and blue flowers with hints of green, and delicate penwork. Feast days are predominantly written in red.

Content

  • Content Item
    • Content Description

      The leaf contains feast days for the month of October. It was compared with 65 calendars from manuscripts of Northern and Central Italian origin. The inclusion of Saint Leodegar of Autun (October 2) is notable as he is only listed in calendars from eight manuscripts from the survey: VAULT Case MS 82, MS M.14, MS M.305, 2020HEM-56, Belengo Hours (Typ 1000), BX2080 .A2 1470z, Ross.111, and Doyle Auctions Lot 43. The latter four are Venetian in origin.

      The inclusion of Saint Placidus (October 5) should also be observed as he is only listed in calendars from the following surveyed manuscripts: VAULT Case MS 82, 2020HEM-56, 2020HEM-76, Osek 64, Chig D IV 55, MS 3, MS M.305, MS M.187, MS M.14, Hours of Rangoni Bentivoglio (W.469), Belengo Hours (Typ 1000). These manuscripts are all dated to the mid-to-late 15th and early-16th centuries (with the exception of VAULT Case MS 82 and Chig D IV 55). While notable, this set of 11 manuscripts that list Saint Placidus is presently too small to confidently glean an estimated date range for the leaf’s creation.

      The entry for October 19 (Saint Proculus, confessor) is particularly unusual and required additional calendar comparison beyond the initial survey. The entry may be a misdate for the feast day of Saint Proculus of Verona (December 9), a bishop who was also labelled a confessor in the Book of Hours of the Carrión Workshop (Ms. 1841) and Giovanni Bentivoglio II Hours (MS M.53). Alternatively, Saint Januarius, whose feast day was celebrated on October 19, was martyred alongside Saint Proculus of Pozzuoli, a deacon who may be mislabeled here as a confessor. The cataloguer (owing to Calendoscope) has only been able to identify one other calendar that lists a Saint Proculus on October 19, though it is from a Liégeois manuscript dated to the second-half of the 11th century (Lat. 819).

History

Origin

The leaf was likely produced, or at least intended for use, in Venice. This is mainly based on the inclusion of the Consecration of the Basilica di San Marco (October 9) and Saint Magnus of Oderzo (October 6, founded eight churches in Venice). 

Provenance

The leaf was purchased from That Guy with the Books (Zubairul Islam) on 19 August 2023. It was previously sold by Christie’s on 12 December 2022 as part of lot 148 from the Collection of Marvin L. Colker. In 1993, Colker acquired the leaf from Maggs Bros. Ltd.

Bibliography

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