Item Info

Script: Bastarda
Language: Latin
Folio Number: f. 69r
Source: Rare Book Department
Notes: Funeral
Notes: This miniature begins Vespers for the Office of the Dead, which was included at the end of every book of hours. These prayers were recited in order to lessen the time that deceased friends and relatives had to spend in Purgatory. This miniature shows priests reciting the Office over a funeral bier in the presence of a group of black-cloaked mourners. Macabre images of worm-eaten corpses, like the one that appears below the funeral scene, served as a reminder to the medieval viewer of his or her own upcoming death and the futility of clinging to the mortal nature of this life.
Sirsi Catalog Key: 1560476
Country: Country:France
City/Town/Township:Rouen ?

Creation Year (Single Year or Range Begin): 1499
Image Dimensions Width: 177 mm
ShelfMark: Lewis E 123