A young man in profile, on a leaf from the Breviary of Lionello d'Este - photo 1

A young man in profile, on a leaf from the Breviary of Lionello d'Este

Lot 205
19.10.2023 10:00UTC -04:00
Classic
Sold
$ 5 292
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUSA, New York
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 1032857
Lot 205 | A young man in profile, on a leaf from the Breviary of Lionello d'Este
Estimate value
$ 2 500 – 3 500
A brilliantly illuminated leaf from the Breviary of Lionello d'Este — also known as the Llangattock Breviary — with a finely modelled profile portrait of a young man in the margin.

269 x 200mm. Two columns of 30 lines written in brown ink in a gothic bookhand, the text from Psalms 80:9 - 84:4, '[Audi populus] meus et contestabor te' to 'mitigasti omnem iram [tuam]', rubrics in red, 4 two-line illuminated initials, full-length bar borders of burnished gold terminating with floral and sprays, verso with a profile portrait of a young man with a hat in the margin (lightly thumbed, else in excellent condition).

Provenance:
(1) All aspects of the manuscript – size, format and illumination – correspond to those of the Missal of Borso d'Este, marquis and then duke of Ferrara (Modena, Biblioteca Estense, Ms W.5.2, lat. 239) and the Breviary was certainly made either for him or his predecessor Lionello, and intended, like the Missal, for use in the ruler’s chapel. It is now usually identified with the Breviary recorded in accounts in the d’Este archives as having been illuminated for Lionello by Giorgio d’Alemagna, Bartolomeo di Benincà, Guglielmo Giraldi and Matteo de' Pasti.

(2) The parent manuscript was sold at Christie’s, 8 December 1958, lot 190, as part of the estate of the 2nd Baron Llangattock. It carried the bookplate of John Etherington Welch Rolls (1807-1870), father of the 1st Baron Llangattock. Many miniatures had already been removed (supposedly by soldiers during the Peninsular War) and after the sale the remaining leaves were separated and dispersed. Sister leaves were sold recently at Christie’s, 24 November – 3 December 2015, lots 27 and 28, and 30 July 2020 lot 3.

Illumination:
The charming, finely modelled portrait of a young man facing right in the border of our leaf directly mirrors the portrait of a young woman, facing left, that appears in a sister leaf in Ferrara, Museo Civico Schifanoia, Inv. OA 1631. The most comprehensive recent study of the Breviary is F. Toniolo, ‘Il lungo viaggio del Breviario di Lionello d'Este tra le due sponde dell'Atlantico’, Medioevo: arte e storia, 2008, pp.564-77. A virtual reconstruction of the manuscript can be found on the 'Broken Books' website (brokenbooks.omeka.net), where the present leaf is listed.
Genre:Religious genre
Place of origin:Italy
Auction house category:Medieval & renaissance manuscripts
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
20 Rockefeller Plaza
10020 New York
USA
Preview
14.10.2023 10:00 – 17:00
15.10.2023 13:00 – 17:00
16.10.2023 10:00 – 17:00
17.10.2023 10:00 – 17:00
18.10.2023 10:00 – 17:00
Phone +1 212 636 2000
Fax +1 212 636 4930
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase
Shipping Postal service
Courier service
pickup by yourself
Payment methods Wire Transfer
Business hoursBusiness hours
Mo 09:30 – 17:00   
Tu 09:30 – 17:00   
We 09:30 – 17:00   
Th 09:30 – 17:00   
Fr 09:30 – 17:00   
Sa closed
Su closed

Related terms

Frequently asked questions

First of all, you should register to be able to purchase at auction. After confirming your email address, enter your personal information in your user profile, such as your first name, last name, and mail address. Choose a lot from the upcoming auction and the maximum amount you want to place on it. After confirmation of your choice, we will send your application by e-mail to the appropriate auction house. If the auction house accepts a request, it will participate in the auction. You can view the current status of a bid at any time in your personal account in the "Bids" section.
Auctions are performed by auction houses and each of the auction houses describes their terms of auction. You can see the texts in the section "Auction information".
The results of the auction are published within a few days after the end of the auction. In the top menu of the site, find the tab "Auctions". Click on it and you will be on the auction catalog page, where you can easily find the category "Results". After opening it, select the desired auction from the list, enter and view the current status of the interested lot.
The information about the auction winners is confidential. The auction winner will receive a direct notification from the auction house responsible with instructions for further action: an invoice for payment and the manner in which the goods will be received.
Each of the auction houses has its own payment policy for the won lots. All auction houses accept bank transfers, most of them accept credit card payments. In the near future you will find detailed information for each case in the section "Auction information" on the page of the auction catalog and the lot.
Shipment of the won lot depends on its size. Small items can be delivered by post. Larger lots are sent by courier. Employees of the auction houses will offer you a wide range to choose from.
No. The archive serves as a reference for the study of auction prices, photographs and descriptions of works of art.