Hours of Jean Boutin - photo 1
Hours of Jean Boutin - photo 2
Hours of Jean Boutin - photo 3
Hours of Jean Boutin - photo 4
Hours of Jean Boutin - photo 5
Hours of Jean Boutin - photo 6

Hours of Jean Boutin

Lot 22
09.07.2025 10:30UTC +01:00
Classic
Sold
£ 30 240
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
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ID 1450576
Lot 22 | Hours of Jean Boutin
Estimate value
£ 18 000 – 25 000
Hours of Jean Boutin
Book of Hours, use of Rome, in Latin and French, illuminated manuscript on vellum [northern France, c.1480-1500]
An engaging, generously illuminated example of northern French regional production, customised by an early owner, Jean Boutin.

170 x 120mm. i + 101 + ii leaves, collation: 16, 24, 3-118, 125 (of 6, lacking vi), 138, 146, 23 lines, ruled space: 101 x 68mm, some catchwords survive, rubrics in red, small initials and line-fillers in gold on red and blue backgrounds throughout, larger initials with vegetal decoration, 14 large miniatures, one panel miniature and 26 small miniatures all within full-page panel borders (lacking a leaf after f.87, possibly a miniature, some of the miniatures and borders repainted in the late 15th or early 16th century, small hole in the border of f.11, occasional nicks to page edges, scattered spotting). Bound in 19th-century vellum gilt, page edges gilt (light thumbsoiling).

Provenance:
(1) The style of illumination indicates a northern French origin, perhaps Normandy.

(2) Jean Boutin (15th- or 16th-century owner); his name (‘JEHAN BOUTIN’) added in the border of the Flight into Egypt miniature, along with further customisation of the illumination.

(3) ‘Bibliothèque de M.A. S** T’, sold by L. Potier, ‘Livres rares, manuscrits et imprimes, lettres autographes’, 23 April 1857, lot 35.

Content: Calendar ff.1-6; Gospel extracts ff.7-10; Passion according to John ff.11-15; Hours of the Virgin, use of Rome ff.16-45v: matins: f.16, lauds: f.23, prime: f.27v, terce f.29v, sext f.31v, none f.33v, vespers f.35v, compline f.38v; Seven Penitential Psalms and Litany ff.45-54; Office of the Dead, use of Rome ff.54v-70; Hours of the Cross ff.68v-70; Hours of the Holy Spirit ff.70v-72; Suffrages ff.72v-86v; Prayers to be said on various occasions, with rubrics in French, opening ‘Quant tu te leveras de ton lict…’ ff.86v-90; ‘Royne des cieulx glorieuse’, prayer to the Virgin, in French verse ff.90-93; further prayers, in Latin and French ff.93v-101v.

Illumination:
This manuscript is an example of provincial manuscript production, originally painted in northern France and significantly customised by an early owner. The sparsely filled Calendar highlights St Denis (9 October), venerated in Paris, and Genevieve, second patron saint of that city, appears at the end of the Suffrages, but these Hours are most likely the work of local craftsmen working perhaps in Normandy to satisfy the demands of middle-class patrons. The eclectic selection of border styles – from foliate compartments to architectural frames – point to a date of production towards the end of the 15th century. The manuscript was evidently repainted not long after it was made by one Jean Boutin, for whom various heraldic devices and mottos were added in the margins, as well as alterations made to a number of the miniatures and borders.

The subjects of the large miniatures are as follows: St John on Patmos f.7; Annunciation f.15v; Visitation f.23; Nativity f.27v; Annunciation to the shepherds f.29v; Adoration of the Magi f.31v; Presentation in the temple f.33v; Flight into Egypt f.35v; Death of the Virgin f.38v; Bathsheba bathing f.45; Funeral mass f.54v; Crucifixion f.68v; Pentecost f.70v; Trinity f.72v.
The panel miniature on f.10v shows Christ carrying the Cross. The small miniatures are on: ff.8, 9, 10, 73, 73v, 74, 79, 79v, 80, 80v, 81, 82, 82v, 83, 83v, 84, 84v, 85, 85v, 86, and 86v.
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
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SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
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09.07.2025 – 09.07.2025
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