Robert Hoe
Who was the owner of Black Hours, Morgan MS 493 from 1909 to 1912?
Black Hours , Morgan MS 493 The Black Hours , MS M.493 ( or the Morgan Black Hours ) is an illuminated book of hours completed in Bruges between 1460 and 1475 . It consists of 121 pages ( leaves ) , with Latin text written in Gothic minuscule script . The words are arranged in rows of fourteen lines , and follow the Roman version of the texts . The lettering is inscribed in silver and gold , and placed within borders ornamented with flowers , foliage and grotesques , on pages dyed a deep blueish black . It contains fourteen full-page miniatures and opens with the months of the liturgical calendar ( folios 3 verso – 14 recto ) , followed by the Hours of the Virgin , and ends with the Office of the Dead ( folio 121v ) . MS M.493 has been in the collection of the Morgan Library & Museum , New York , since 1912 . It is one of seven surviving black books of hours , all originating from Bruges and dated to the mid-to-late 15th century . They are so named for their unusual dark blueish appearance , a colourisation achieved through the expensive process of dyeing the vellum with iron gall ink . This dye is very corrosive and the surviving examples are mostly badly decomposed ; MS M.493 is in relatively good condition due to its very thick parchment . The book is a masterpiece of Late Gothic manuscript illumination . However , no records survive of its commission , but its uniquely dark tone , expense of production , quality and rarity suggest ownership by privileged and sophisticated members of the Burgundian court . The book is often attributed , on stylistic grounds , to a follower of Willem Vrelant , a leading and influential Flemish illuminator . Commission . The black books of hours are a grouping of four to five ( some books so defined contain only a few pages in this style ) extant Flemish illuminated manuscripts so named for their dark appearance . The effect was achieved by soaking the vellum in black dye or ink before they were lettered with gold and silver leaf . The black dye was highly corrosive and so the metals had to be of high purity , and the vellum needed to be unusually thick to survive the process . The black manuscripts date from about 1455–80 and include the Black Hours , Hispanic Society , New York ( c . 1458 ) , Black Hours of Galeazzo Maria Sforza ( c . 1466–67 ) and the Hours of Mary of Burgundy ( c . 1477 ) . The artwork is of a sophisticated and unusual taste , and the uncommon colour of the pages likely carried an almost mystical aura for the owner . MS M.493 can thus be assumed as intended for high nobility ; probably from the court of Philip the Good or Charles the Bold . The members of the Burgundian court were known to have had a preference for dark , sombre colours , and the black books can be assumed to have been designed specifically for their taste . Black books were more highly regarded than conventional illuminated books of hours , and today art historians assume they were commissioned by the court of Philip the Good . Philips proclivity for black arose from the brutal assassination in 1419 of his father John the Fearless . The funeral procession was lined with 2000 black flags with black standards . From then on Philip wore only black clothes , as an expression of his grief . The style was adapted by other members of the court , who seem to have favoured black against gold and silver in artworks as well in formal dress , as can be seen in Rogier van der Weydens contemporary Jean Wauquelin presenting his Chroniques de Hainaut to Philip the Good . Emperor Maximilian I observed of the Burgundian rulers that their collections were luxurious , the home treasury , and the library full of treasures , and the court ceremonial were oriented on a godlike super-elevation of the ruler . Attribution . The manuscript does not contain any family crest to identify the donor , who , given the expense of the book and its labour-intensive production , is assumed to have been a high-ranking member of court . Feast days noted in the calendars , including for Donatian of Reims ( 14 October ) , indicate it was produced in Bruges , or given the inclusion of the feast of Livinus ( 12 November ) , possibly in Ghent . The artists who designed , illustrated and inscribed MS M.493 are unknown , as are the circumstances of its commission . The book is often linked to the circle of the Utrecht illuminator Willem Vrelant , who was highly regarded and successful , and was active in Bruges from the 1450s until his death in 1481 . This attribution is based on the resemblance of some of the figures in the miniatures with those in works attributed to him ; the angular and linear manner of the figures clothes is also consistent with his style . The text pro me peccatore ( for me a sinner ) , which uses a masculine form of the Latin noun , indicates the book was produced for a man , and the inventory records of its mid-19th-century owner , Nicholas Yemeniz , record that it was produced by a workshop which had often been commissioned by the Burgundian Dukes . Other possible attributions include the circle of the French painter Philippe de Mazerolles ( d . 1479 ) or the workshop of Liévin van Lathem ( active 1454–93 ) . According to the Morgan Library , van Lathems influence can be seen in the figures in angular drapery [ who ] move somewhat stiffly in shallowly defined spaces.. . [ while ] the mens flat faces are dominated by large noses . The style of the miniatures and borders are similar to those of the Galeazzo Maria Sforza in Vienna , but they are not from the same workshop . Description . The manuscript consists of 122 pages each measuring about . The borders re mostly coloured light blue , while the illustrations are overwhelmingly dark , and of black , grey red , old rose and green pigments , with some white and flesh-tone colours . Each miniature is placed opposite the text of a prayer set against a dark background . This books solemnity is in contrast to the bright colours found in most contemporary books of hours and seems to reflect a rather gloomy and mournful court outlook . The many shades of blue were achieved from a variety of ingredients , each allowing varying depths and varieties of colour . The miniatures technique and style can be dated as around 1475 . in the 15th century , Ultramarine pigment was extremely rare and worth more by weight than gold ; thus its prevalence in this work is an indicator of the commissioners wealth . The opening letters of each prayer are formed from gold leaf on green ground . Their texts contain words from the Hours of the Cross , the Hours of the Holy Spirit , the Mass of the Virgin , the Hours of the Virgin , the Penitential Psalms , and the Office of the Dead . The lettering is in Gothic minuscule with silver ink , with gold leaf added to the rubrics . The border decorations include landscapes , jagged acanthus scrolls , birds , small animals and grotesques ; the latter are similar in style to those found in the Black Hours of Galeazzo Maria Sforza , and include naked winged devils and hybrid men . They are ornamented exclusively in gold and are shaded mostly by black pigment . They are lined with yellow or gold filigree and extravagant foliage , including vines . The manuscript has deteriorated over time and has flaked in some areas . The book was rebound in the 19th century for its then owner , the French bibliophile , by the bookbinder ( known as Trautz-Bauzonnet ) , and is today encased in a wooden box , which is also modern . The binding is in tan pigskin with oxidised silver clasps . Yemenizs monogram of two interlocking Ys is stamped on the central panel of the binding and on the clasps . Miniatures . The miniatures depict scenes from the lives of the Virgin and Christ and are placed to the left ( verso ) pages of the book , mostly against calendar representations of days from the liturgical year . The illuminations include biblical figures dressed in contemporary late medieval or Gothic dress . In folio 76v , David wears the ceremonial robes of a 15th-century monarch . The decorations on the borders are particularly vivid in detail . The Crucifixion ( folio 14v ) is the books most acclaimed illustration . It is outlined by border illustrations of fantastical creatures and a peacock . The illumination shows Jesus on the cross with his head inclined and bleeding from multiple wounds . Mary , wearing a wimpled veil , and St John stand to the left of the foot of the cross . Both have halos . The gesturing mourners to their right are given facial expressions that convey a deep sense of sadness and loss . Behind them are two soldiers wearing helmets , one of whom may be Longinus . The hilly landscape behind the figures depicts the walls of Jerusalem set against a deep blue sky . The marginalia contain hybrid men , including one who is half fish and lifts a sword , and another with animal legs . Art historian Ingo Walther described folio 18v , which depicts the Descent of the Holy Spirit , as evidencing the unusual , exquisite and precious overall effect.. . generated by using the technique of fixing an illumination on a piece of black dyed parchment . Rinceau decorations on the edges outline a depiction of Mary at the centre of the court of the Apostles . The gilded D represents the opening letter of the Hours of the Holy Spirit . The following is a complete list of the manuscripts miniatures : - Folio 14v : The Crucifixion ( opposite Hours of the Cross ) - Folio 18v : Pentecost ( opposite Hours of the Holy Spirit : Matins ) - Folio 22v : Virgin and Child ( opposite Mass of the Virgin ) - Folio 29v : Annunciation ( opposite Hours of the Virgin : Matins ) - Folio 39v : Visitation ( opposite Hours of the Virgin : Lauds ) - Folio 50v : Nativity ( Folio 50v : Nativity ( opposite Hours of the Virgin : Prime ) ) - Folio 54v : Annunciation to the Shepherds ( opposite Hours of the Virgin : Terce ) - Folio 58v : Adoration of the Magi ( opposite Hours of the Virgin : Sext ) - Folio 62v : Massacre of the Innocents ( opposite Hours of the Virgin ) - Folio 66v : Flight into Egypt ( opposite Hours of the Virgin ) - Folio 72v : Coronation of the Virgin ( opposite Hours of the Virgin : Compline ) - Folio 76v : David in prayer ( opposite Penitential Psalms and Litany ) - Folio 93v : Resurrection of Lazarus ( opposite Office of the Dead : Vespers ) - Folio 98v : Chanting of the Office of the Dead ( opposite Office of the Dead : Matins ) Provenance and exhibition history . MS 493s early history is obscure , and there are no surviving title or inventory records before the 19th century . The arms of the family of Isabelle de Bethe is stamped on one of the pages ; her family married into Burgundians and were wealthy and prominent members of Flanders society . The manuscript is described in an 1867 inventory of the collection of Nicholas Yemeniz ( 1806–1869 ) , a Lyon silk manufacturer born in Constantinople . It was acquired by the French publisher and art collector Ambroise Firmin-Didot in 1871 . He in turn sold the book to Alphonse Labitte in 1879 . MS M.493 was acquired by Robert Hoe in 1909 for $500 ( about $ in 2021 terms ) . Hoe held it until 1912 ; following his death that year it was sold in a large scale and commercially successful sell-off of his collection of rare and antique books . It passed between two book dealers , Bernard Quaritch and Léon Gruel , before its eventual acquisition by the Pierpont Morgan Library later that year . The book was exhibited at the Paris Colonial Exhibition , the Maritime et dart Flamand in Antwerp in 1930 , at the Morgans 50th anniversary exhibition in 1957 , in Brussels in 1959 , and in Bruges in 1981 . References . Sources . - Ainsworth , Maryan . Man , Myth , and Sensual Pleasures : Jan Gossarts Renaissance : the Complete Works . New York : Metropolitan Museum of Art , 2010 . - Harthan , John . The Book of Hours . New York : Thomas Y . Crowell Co. , 1977 . - Jenni , Ulrike ; Thoss , Dagmar . Das Schwarze Gebetbuch , Codex 1856 ( in German ) . Frankfurt am Main : Insel Verlag , 1982 . - MacBeth , Rhona , The Rise of Blue in Europe , in Museum of Fine Arts , Boston , Blue : Cobalt to Cerulean in Art and Culture . San Francisco , CA : Chronicle Books , 2015 . - Walther , Ingo . Codices Illustres . Berlin : Taschen Verlag , 2014 . Further reading . - Facsimile Ausgabe von Pierpont Morgan Library , New York , M . 493 . Luzern : Faksimile Verlag Luzern , 2001 - Wieck , Roger . Painted Prayers : The Book of Hours in Medieval and Renaissance Art . New York : George Braziller , 1997 . External links . - Full set of digitized images , Morgan Library