Dunois Master - photo 1
Dunois Master - photo 2
Dunois Master - photo 3

Dunois Master

Lot 2
09.07.2025 10:30UTC +01:00
Classic
To bid, go to the website
CHRISTIE'S
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
Buyer Premiumsee on Website%
ID 1450537
Lot 2 | Dunois Master
Estimate value
£ 18 000 – 25 000
Dunois Master
Lancelot dining with a knight and his sweetheart, miniature cut from the Livre du Lancelot del Lac, in French, illuminated manuscript on vellum [Paris, c.1440]
An evocative miniature from the famous Arthurian romance Livre du Lancelot del Lac illuminated by the Dunois Master.

c.102 x 90mm. The miniature depicting Lancelot dining with a knight and his sweetheart, with another knight in red armour arriving to the right, the scene corresponding to IV, 282:33 in H.O. Summer's edition of the text, The Vulgate Version of the Arthurian Romances, 1911; reverse with 16 partial lines of text corresponding to IV, 281:5-16, beginning: 'corut sus a celui' (tiny marginal losses to the gilding, some very light rubbing to the canopy and to the knight in red armour, overall in excellent condition). Mounted and framed.

Provenance:
(1) The Livre du Lancelot del Lac and the Roman de Guiron le Courtois (BnF mss. fr. 356-7) may well be the two manuscripts for which Prigent de Coëtivy, admiral of France, paid Jean Haincelin in 1444, a crucial piece of evidence to the argument identifying the Bedford Master with Haincelin de Haguenau, perhaps the father of Jean Haincelin, the Dunois Master. The Lancelot was dismembered by the 16th century.

(2) By the 19th century the present miniature and 33 others were mounted in a red morocco album ‘with an unidentified, probably French, coat of arms’ (W.R. Jeudwine, Early Fifteenth Century Miniatures, 1962, p.2).

(3) Joachim Napoléon, Prince Murat (1835-1932), a member of the Bonaparte-Murat family: with his bookplate; sold from the estate of his widow, Marie (d.1960), daughter of the Duc d’Elschingen, to:

(4) Wynne R. H. Jeudwine (1920-1984), collector-dealer in drawings, prints, and books: exhibited and offered for sale at the Alpine Club Gallery in London in 1962. The present miniature published in Jeudwine, 1962, no 17. Acquired by:

(5) Alfred Scharf (1900-1965) and Felicie Scharf, née Radziejewski (1901-1991), by descent to the current owner.

Illumination:
The Dunois Master was the assistant of the Bedford Master and then his successor as the dominant figure in Parisian illumination from about 1435. His soft style derives from that of the Bedford Master and he also inherited the older Master's stock of compositional patterns. He built on this legacy, showing great compositional inventiveness in both secular manuscripts and devotional books, like the Hours of the Count of Dunois from which he was named (London, BL. Ms Yates Thompson 3). The Dunois Master's assured painterly technique and narrative skills have created an entrancing epitome of the chivalric ideals at the heart of French court culture. The present miniature depicts Lancelot dining with a knight and his sweetheart, who falls in love with him. A knight in red armour arrives and carries off the host's young brother.
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
8 King Street, St. James's
SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
Preview
09.07.2025 – 09.07.2025
Phone +44 (0)20 7839 9060
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Buyer Premium see on Website
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase

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.
×
Save this search query and get timely email alerts! It is simple and very effective.
иоганн грунд (1808 - 1887)
Create a Search Subscription