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Source Description

Psalters were the primary prayerbooks used during the early medieval period. King David was commonly believed to have composed the psalms of the Old Testament that make up the Psalter. Here, David is seated within the initial “B” of Psalm 1, which begins “Beatus vir” (Blessed is the man). He is depicted as a musician plucking his psaltery, a stringed instrument after which the “Psalter” is named.This late twelfth- or early thirteenth-century Psalter was made for a woman, and is of Premonstratensian use. Created and used in Rhineland, Germany, it remained there until the French Revolution, after which it was eventually acquired by the English book collector Sir Thomas Phillipps. The Psalter is liturgical, and therefore has eight divisions for the liturgical week, as well as the more typical three-part divisions. Each of these major psalms is marked by large and lively initials. Early added prayers on the first and last blank pages, as well as occasional marginal prayers and notes in a variety of hands, attest to the manuscript's use through time.

Scholar Source Context

Document identity
localId
8364
label
Leaf from Psalter: Initial B (Beatus vir)
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
8364
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Leaf from Psalter: Initial B (Beatus vir)
description
Psalters were the primary prayerbooks used during the early medieval period. King David was commonly believed to have composed the psalms of the Old Testament that make up the Psalter. Here, David is seated within the initial “B” of Psalm 1, which begins “Beatus vir” (Blessed is the man). He is depicted as a musician plucking his psaltery, a stringed instrument after which the “Psalter” is named.This late twelfth- or early thirteenth-century Psalter was made for a woman, and is of Premonstratensian use. Created and used in Rhineland, Germany, it remained there until the French Revolution, after which it was eventually acquired by the English book collector Sir Thomas Phillipps. The Psalter is liturgical, and therefore has eight divisions for the liturgical week, as well as the more typical three-part divisions. Each of these major psalms is marked by large and lively initials. Early added prayers on the first and last blank pages, as well as occasional marginal prayers and notes in a variety of hands, attest to the manuscript's use through time.
provenance
Created for Augustinian or Premonstratensian use (?), likely Rheinland, late 12th or early 13th century. Leander van Ess, Darmstadt, after 1800. Purchased by Sir Thomas Phillipps [1792-1872], 1824 [1]; Phillipps' Sale, London, either 1911, no. 868, or 1913, no. 1021. Léon Gruel, Paris [2]; purchased by Henry Walters, Baltimore; by bequest to Walters Art Museum, 1931.[1] fol. 1r - rampant lion stamp and inscription: ""Sir T.P./Middle Hill 441""[2] no. 924 on front pastedown
date
late 12th-early 13th century (Medieval)
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
illuminated manuscripts
folios (leaves)
imageCount
1
pageCount
1
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
21.3
height
13.8
dimensionsRaw
H: 8 3/8 x W: 5 7/16 in. (21.3 x 13.8 cm)
Source extras
style
Romanesque
med
ink, paint, and gold on parchment
creator_ids
6211
collection_ids
MED
MSS
exhibition_ids
none
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
4b40fbe308939bf3