Follower or workshop of Maître François - photo 1
Follower or workshop of Maître François - photo 2
Follower or workshop of Maître François - photo 3
Follower or workshop of Maître François - photo 4

Follower or workshop of Maître François

Lot 21
09.07.2025 10:30UTC +01:00
Classic
Sold
£ 15 120
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
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ID 1450315
Lot 21 | Follower or workshop of Maître François
Estimate value
£ 12 000 – 15 000
Follower or workshop of Maître François
Book of Hours, use of Paris, in Latin and French, illuminated manuscript on vellum [Paris, c.1480-90]
A charming, pocket-sized Parisian Hours from the end of the 15th century.

91 x 65mm. iii (paper) + 190 + iv (paper) + iii (paper) leaves, complete, collation: 1-238, 246, modern foliation in pencil, 14 lines of text, written space: 54 x 38mm, penwork initials in blue with red infill and flourishing extending into the margins or in burnished gold with dark blue infill and flourishing extending into the margins throughout, line fillers in blue and gold, rubrics in red, 12 large miniatures within full borders and 4 small miniatures within three-sided borders (some very light thumbing and cockling, a few smudges and losses of pigment to some of the miniatures, e.g. to the robe of the nobleman on f.137, else in fine condition). 17th-century French red morocco gilt, brass clasp and catch (joints a little scuffed).

Provenance:
(1) The liturgical use, Calendar and illumination indicate that the manuscript was produced in Paris in the final quarter of the 15th century.

(2) An erased ?16th-century inscription on f.4, partially legible under black light: 'Monsieur La [...] Francois ?Hublot'.

(3) Jacques-Philippe Ledru (1754-1832), French physician, mayor of Fontenay-aux-Roses, Grand Master of the Parisian masonic lodge the Chevaliers de la Croix and son of Nicolas-Philippe Ledru, conjurer and illusionist under Louis XV and Louis XVI: his engraved ex-libris ‘EX LIBRIS JACOBI PHILIPPI LE DRU MEDICUS’ inside upper cover.

Content: Calendar ff.1-14v; blanks ff.15-16; Gospel sequences ff.17-24v; Joys of the Virgin ff.25-28v; prayers to be said at different times of day and at various points during mass ff.29-40v; Hours of the Virgin, use of Paris, ff.41-100v: matins f.41, lauds f.54, prime f.67, terce f.73v, sext f.78v, none f.83, vespers f.87v; compline f.95; Hours of the Cross ff.101-108v; Hours of the Holy Spirit ff.109-114v; Seven Penitential Psalms and Litany ff.115-136v; Office of the Dead, use of Paris, ff.137-190v; a gathering of 4 added leaves at the end with a prayer to the Virgin and to the Holy Wound, in an 18th-century hand in French and Latin.

Illumination:
The illumination of this diminutive manuscript is by a follower or workshop of the celebrated Maître François (fl.1460-80), now generally accepted as identifiable with François Barbier père. An oeuvre of around fifty manuscripts has been reconstructed for the master through comparison to his single documented work from 1475: a two-volume La Cité de Dieu, Raoul de Presles’ vernacular translation of St Augustine (Paris, Bib. Sainte-Geneviève, ms. 246). The light, clear tones, especially in the landscape, the liberal use of gold strokes to highlight, the porcelain-like complexions of the female figures and the swarthiness of the male faces all reflect the master's individual style and execution.

The subjects of the large miniatures are as follows: St John on Patmos f.17; Annunciation f.41; Nativity f.67, Annunciation to the Shepherds f.73v, Adoration of the Magi f.78v, Presentation in the Temple f.83; Massacre of the Innocents f.87v; Flight into Egypt f.95; Crucifixion f.101; Pentecost f.109; Bathsheba bathing f.115; Death with a spear approaching a nobleman f.137.
The small miniatures are on ff.18v, 20v, 22v, and 54.
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
8 King Street, St. James's
SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
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09.07.2025 – 09.07.2025
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