Beato Angelico's Missal

Beato Angelico's Missal – Vallecchi – Ms. 558 – Museo Nazionale di San Marco (Florence, Italy)

San Domenico monastery in Fiesole (Italy) β€” 1424–1430

The splendid result of a collaboration between the two most prominent artists of their time and the beginning of a new era: 40 groundbreaking miniatures by Fra Angelico and Zanobi Strozzi as a testimony to the beginning of the Quattrocento

  1. This manuscript on St. Dominic is a wonderful overview of Florentine illumination at the beginning of the Quattrocento

  2. 40 miniatures in the manuscript came from Fra Angelico (ca. 1395–1455), eleven more from Zanobi Strozzi (1412–68)

  3. Zanobi was identified by Giorgio Vasari (1511–74) as Fra Angelico’s most talented student

Beato Angelico's Missal

Facsimile Copy Available!
Price Category: €€€
(3,000€ - 7,000€)
  1. Description
  2. Detail Picture
  3. Single Page
  4. Facsimile Editions (1)
Description
Beato Angelico's Missal

The so-called Missal of Fra Beato Angelico is a luxurious prime example of Quattrocento book illumination in Florence. The missal, which contains the Ordinary of the mass as well as the prayers and hymns for the Christian feast days, was adorned with 51 striking miniatures in rich colors and precious gold, beautiful historiated initials and magnificent borders by two leading artists of the early Italian Renaissance: Fra Angelico and Zanobi Strozzi, his most talented pupil according to Vasari. Fra Angelico, also known as Beato Angelico, was a Dominican monk in the Convent of San Domenico in Fiesole, where the artful manuscript was created. The patron saint of the order and convent, St. Dominic, is accordingly given a special status, which is reflected in an extraordinarily sublime miniature. Fra Angelico and Zanobi Strozzi created an incomparable Quattrocento masterpiece that captivates with its opulent illuminations, vibrant colors and the great artistry of its masters.

Beato Angelico's Missal

The so-called Missal of Fra Angelico presents the illumination of the Florentine Quattrocento in outstanding quality: from the hand of the main representative of the early Florentine Renaissance, Fra Angelico, and his most gifted student, Zanobi Strozzi. Liturgical hymns for the various saints’ holidays were illustrated in numerous outstanding miniatures. The focus lay thereby on St. Dominic, the patron saint of the manuscript’s intended destination: the Convent of San Domenico in Fiesole, wherein the Dominican Monk lived from 1420 onward.

The Leading Master of the Early Florentine Renaissance

Fra Angelico (before 1400–1455), also known as Beato Angelico in Italian, is one of the big names of Italian Renaissance painting. He entered the Dominican Order as Giovanni da Fiesole. From 1420 onward, we was active in the Dominican Convent of San Domenico in Fiesole, and later in the Covent of San Marco in Florence. There, Fra Angelico decorated the walls of the cloister and other rooms with grandiose paintings. Additionally, he was also active as an illuminator, several manuscripts from his hand have survived. One of which is the gorgeous missal from the Convent of San Domenico in Fiesole, originating in the years 1424–1430.

The Gifted Student

40 miniatures in the manuscript came from Fra Angelico, eleven more from Zanobi Strozzi, a student of the painting Dominican monk. Zanobi Strozzi (1412–1468) originated from the genteel Florentine Strozzi family, producing both panel paintings and miniatures and was active as an artist for the Medici inter alia. He was identified by Giorgio Vasari in his Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects as Fra Angelico’s most talented student.

Remarkable Composition

The miniatures in Beato Angelico’s Missal give a wonderful overview of Florentine illumination at the beginning of the Quattrocento. The grandiose play with form and space characterizes the compositions and indicates the masterfulness of the painter. The paintings illustrate the hymns for the feast days of various saints. Saint Dominic – patron saint of the convent – is surrounded by musical angels, and is depicted in an exceedingly colorful scene. Fantastical flowers, vines, and similar, lavish ornamentation adorn the manuscript alongside depictions of the saints in large initials. As a synthesis of the arts, the missal is presented in exuberant luster and in the full glory of the fantastic art of the early Florentine Renaissance!

Codicology

Alternative Titles
Il Messale del Beato Angelico
Graduale di San Domenico
The San Domenico Missal
Missale des Fra Beato Angelico
Size / Format
522 pages / 47.5 Γ— 35.3 cm
Origin
Italy
Date
1424–1430
Language
Script
Gothic Textura
Illustrations
51 miniatures, numerous historiated initials and magnificent borders
Artist / School

Available facsimile editions:
Beato Angelico's Missal – Vallecchi – Ms. 558 – Museo Nazionale di San Marco (Florence, Italy)
Vallecchi – Florence, 2005
Limited Edition: 600 copies
Detail Picture

Beato Angelico's Missal

Annunciation to Mary

This beautiful, ivory-colored initial 'R' on a gold background shows the Annunciation in its inner compartment: With a book on her lap, Mary sits in a lovely garden while the Holy Spirit, sent by God the Father in heaven, comes upon her. At the same time, she is terrified by the approaching archangel Gabriel, who will reveal to her the miracle of her virgin pregnancy.

Beato Angelico's Missal – Vallecchi – Ms. 558 – Museo Nazionale di San Marco (Florence, Italy)
Single Page

Beato Angelico's Missal

Saint Dominic

This splendid page introduces one of the liturgical hymns of the missal. The upper third is taken up by a sublime depiction of St. Dominic, who appears in a mandorla surrounded by angels making music. His holiness and veneration is enhanced by the golden halo of rays that surrounds him. Blue clouds at his feet visualize that he has already entered the heavenly kingdom. The patron saint wears the habit of the Dominicans, a white scapular and a black cope, while he presents an open book to the angels – perhaps a self-referential representation of the missal?

The text of the hymn, neatly written on parchment, begins with an exuberantly illuminated initial I, which almost drowns out the text and the accompanying notes. The opulent tendrils of the initial form a total of six medallions in which other saints, some also in Dominican habit, appear against blue backgrounds. The friendly embrace between the two monks in the lower medallion is striking: a Franciscan on the left and a Dominican on the right.

Beato Angelico's Missal – Vallecchi – Ms. 558 – Museo Nazionale di San Marco (Florence, Italy)
Facsimile Editions

#1 Messale del Beato Angelico

Vallecchi – Florence, 2005

Publisher: Vallecchi – Florence, 2005
Limited Edition: 600 copies
Binding: Bound in tooled leather with brass bosses and a center rosette. Binding inspired by Ms. 515 is closest to the original.
Commentary: 1 volume (208 pages) by Magnolia Scudieri, Maria Grazia Ciardi DuprΓ© Dal Poggetto, Sara Giacomelli and Maria Paola Masini
Language: Italian
1 volume: This facsimile is not complete. 44 pages are reproduced. Reproduction of the entire original document as detailed as possible (scope, format, colors). The binding may not correspond to the original or current document binding. Both the facsimile and commentary are presented in one volume, the commentary appears among the pages of the facsimile. Printed on special paper from the Fedrigoni paper-mill of Verona. The 44 illuminated pages of the facsimile are presented on a larger white background in full color.
Facsimile Copy Available!
Price Category: €€€
(3,000€ - 7,000€)
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