History of Alexander the Great
Alexander the Great was regarded by the princes of the Middle Ages as the ideal of the ancient ruler. Manuscripts illuminating the adventures of the conqueror of what was perhaps the first world empire in history were correspondingly popular. The Brussels manuscript of the Alexander romance relating the history of Alexander the Great, one of the most important prose works of the Middle Ages, is counted among the most impressive testimonies to this veneration. The codex was made for King Philip IV of France, called the Fair. This is also evident in the magnificent artistic decoration of the Old French text. Miniatures of the highest quality, preciously designed with abundant gold and silver, illustrate the adventurous tales from the life of Alexander the Great. With its wonderful miniatures and beautiful script in Gothic minuscule, the manuscript is certainly one of the highlights of 13th century French illumination.
History of Alexander the Great
Made in Brussels, this manuscript details the story of Alexander the Great and counts as one of the most impressive and important products of medieval prose. The codex was created for the French King Phillip IV “The Fair”. The clear influence of the gorgeous, artistic layout of Old French texts can be seen. Miniatures of the highest quality illustrated the adventurous tales out of the life of Alexander the Great, which are all richly crafted in precious gold and silver. The manuscript, with its wonderful gothic miniatures and wonderful minuscule script, counts as part of the high point of French illumination of the 13th century.
One of the Most Important Rulers in History as the Hero of a Novel
Entwining around numerous depictions of Alexander the Great in the special medieval fashion of myths and legends are biographical facts, which are creatively embroidered. The life of Alexander the Great offers enough material for a substantial adventure novel fully in the tradition of medieval enthusiasm for heroes and legends. Given an extensive education, he was upheld as an ideal ruler. Subsequently, Alexander the Great was identified with the ideals of court culture. This concept of a hero from Antiquity found particular expression in France in form of the famous Roman d’Alexandre, the Old French novel on Alexander. It depicted a legendary expansion of the life of Alexander the Great, decorated with rich tales of adventure and travel. The novel was second only to the Bible as the most widely distributed book in Europe. In countless illustrations, the manuscript retains the story of Alexander the Great in book-form, with historical facts peppered in around the illustrations and text.
Wonderful Miniatures and Illustrations of Adventure
Today one of the most gorgeous editions of the tradition is found in the collection of the Bibliothèque Royale de Belgique in Brussels. Originating in the 13th century, the manuscript contains a total of 180 pages of 100 grandiose miniatures, which illustrate the text. The text, which is split between two columns in gothic miniscule, is the Old French edition of the novel. The miniatures are conveniently placed and integrated within the text. Before the magnificent golden background or the finely divided ornament-pages, the artists depicted wonderful architectural representations and splendid scenes of battle. Decorated horses carry valiant knights into the awful din of battle, as whole armies fight with terrifying monsters. Alexander stands ever as the protagonist of the novel and as the center of the historical narrative. The manuscript with its ostentatious miniatures is a true masterpiece of illumination and was commissioned by the King Philip IV “The Fair” (1268–1314). This powerful ruler is known even today for his comprehensive and impactful political reforms for his empire as well as the Kingdom of France. He wanted to own a copy of the influential and famous novel of one of the greatest rulers in history, which was also worthy of a king with respect to its artistic furnishings.
Codicology
- Alternative Titles
- Historia de Alejandro Magno
Geschichte Alexanders des Großen
Histoire d’Alexandre le Grand
Storia di Alessandro Magno
História de Alexandre Magno
Brussels Alexander Romance - Size / Format
- 180 pages / 24.0 × 18.0 cm
- Origin
- Belgium
- Date
- 13th century
- Style
- Language
- Script
- Gothic minuscule
- Illustrations
- 100 illuminated miniatures on a gold and silver backgrounds
- Content
- A novelized story of Alexander the Great
- Patron
- King Philip IV of France (1268–1314), called Philip the Fair
History of Alexander the Great
Alexander Jousting
Presented in a gold leaf frame with a splendidly patterned red background, Alexander is shown unseating his opponent, whose lance has broken. Identifiable throughout the text by the escutcheon of three gold crowns on a field of blue, Alexander has his heels dug into his stirrups with his lance firmly couched under his arm. Some odd details in the miniature include Alexander’s horned horse and the escutcheons of his opponent, likely the Persian Emperor Darius III, which have been rubbed off.
History of Alexander the Great
Alexander's Battle with Giants
In Alexandrian romances, the hero not only fights the armies of various nations, but also leads his warriors against hosts of beasts and monsters as he goes beyond the boundaries of the known world. This bas-de-page miniature features a gold leaf background and is set within a subtly patterned frame of blue and red.
The race of giants is depicted as being taller than Alexander’s men are on horseback, tall as trees in fact, and their oversized feet exceed the limits of the frame. Armed with clubs and dressed in crude garments, they are depicted as oafish and bearded with unkempt hair. Tales of Alexander fighting giants are probably rooted in his historic battles with the Celts, who were indeed tall compared to the Greeks, but not giants.
#1 Historia de Alejandro Magno
Languages: Spanish, English, German
(7,000€ - 10,000€)
- Treatises / Secular Books
- Apocalypses / Beatus
- Astronomy / Astrology
- Bestiaries
- Bibles / Gospels
- Chronicles / History / Law
- Geography / Maps
- Saints' Lives
- Islam / Oriental
- Judaism / Hebrew
- Single Leaf Collections
- Leonardo da Vinci
- Literature / Poetry
- Liturgical Manuscripts
- Medicine / Botany / Alchemy
- Music
- Mythology / Prophecies
- Psalters
- Other Religious Books
- Games / Hunting
- Private Devotion Books
- Other Genres
- Afghanistan
- Armenia
- Austria
- Belgium
- Colombia
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Egypt
- Ethiopia
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- India
- Iran
- Iraq
- Israel
- Italy
- Japan
- Lebanon
- Luxembourg
- Mexico
- Morocco
- Netherlands
- Palestine
- Peru
- Poland
- Portugal
- Russia
- Serbia
- Spain
- Sri Lanka
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Syria
- Turkey
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom
- United States
- Uzbekistan
- Aboca Museum
- Ajuntament de Valencia
- Akademie Verlag
- Akademische Druck- u. Verlagsanstalt (ADEVA)
- Aldo Ausilio Editore - Bottega d’Erasmo
- Alecto Historical Editions
- Alkuin Verlag
- Almqvist & Wiksell
- Amilcare Pizzi
- Andreas & Andreas Verlagsbuchhandlung
- Archa 90
- Archiv Verlag
- Archivi Edizioni
- Arnold Verlag
- ARS
- Ars Magna
- ArtCodex
- AyN Ediciones
- Azimuth Editions
- Badenia Verlag
- Bärenreiter-Verlag
- Belser Verlag
- Belser Verlag / WK Wertkontor
- Benziger Verlag
- Bernardinum Wydawnictwo
- BiblioGemma
- Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana (Vaticanstadt, Vaticanstadt)
- Bibliotheca Palatina Faksimile Verlag
- Bibliotheca Rara
- Boydell & Brewer
- Bramante Edizioni
- Bredius Genootschap
- Brepols Publishers
- British Library
- C. Weckesser
- Caixa Catalunya
- Canesi
- CAPSA, Ars Scriptoria
- Caratzas Brothers, Publishers
- Carus Verlag
- Casamassima Libri
- Chavane Verlag
- Christian Brandstätter Verlag
- Circulo Cientifico
- Club Bibliófilo Versol
- Club du Livre
- CM Editores
- Collegium Graphicum
- Collezione Apocrifa Da Vinci
- Comissão Nacional para as Comemorações dos Descobrimentos Portugueses
- Coron Verlag
- Corvina
- CTHS
- D. S. Brewer
- Damon
- De Agostini/UTET
- De Nederlandsche Boekhandel
- De Schutter
- Deuschle & Stemmle
- Deutscher Verlag für Kunstwissenschaft
- DIAMM
- Droz
- E. Schreiber Graphische Kunstanstalten
- Ediciones Boreal
- Ediciones Grial
- Ediclube
- Edições Inapa
- Edilan
- Editalia
- Edition Deuschle
- Edition Georg Popp
- Edition Leipzig
- Edition Libri Illustri
- Editiones Reales Sitios S. L.
- Éditions de l'Oiseau Lyre
- Editions Medicina Rara
- Editorial Casariego
- Editorial Mintzoa
- Editrice Antenore
- Editrice Velar
- Edizioni Edison
- Egeria, S.L.
- Eikon Editores
- Electa
- Emery Walker Limited
- Enciclopèdia Catalana
- Eos-Verlag
- Ephesus Publishing
- Eugrammia Press
- Extraordinary Editions
- Fackelverlag
- Facsimila Art & Edition
- Facsimile Editions Ltd.
- Facsimilia Art & Edition Ebert KG
- Faksimile Verlag
- Feuermann Verlag
- Folger Shakespeare Library
- Franco Cosimo Panini Editore
- Friedrich Wittig Verlag
- Fundación Hullera Vasco-Leonesa
- G. Braziller
- Gabriele Mazzotta Editore
- Gebr. Mann Verlag
- Gesellschaft für graphische Industrie
- Getty Research Institute
- Giovanni Domenico de Rossi
- Giunti Editore
- Graffiti
- Grafica European Center of Fine Arts
- Guido Pressler
- Guillermo Blazquez
- Gustav Kiepenheuer
- H. N. Abrams
- Harrassowitz
- Helikon
- Hendrickson Publishers
- Henning Oppermann
- Herder Verlag
- Hes & De Graaf Publishers
- Hoepli
- Hortus Deliciarum
- Houghton Library
- Hugo Schmidt Verlag
- Idion Verlag
- Il Bulino, edizioni d'arte
- ILte
- Imago
- Insel Verlag
- Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia
- Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana - Treccani
- Istituto Ellenico di Studi Bizantini e Postbizantini
- Istituto Geografico De Agostini
- Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato
- Italarte Art Establishments
- J. Thorbecke
- Jan Thorbecke Verlag
- Johnson Reprint Corporation
- Josef Stocker
- Josef Stocker-Schmid
- Jugoslavija
- Karl W. Hiersemann
- Kasper Straube
- Kaydeda Ediciones
- Kindler Verlag / Coron Verlag
- Kodansha International Ltd.
- Konrad Kölbl Verlag
- Kurt Wolff Verlag
- La Liberia dello Stato
- La Linea Editrice
- La Meta Editore
- Lambert Schneider
- Landeskreditbank Baden-Württemberg
- Leo S. Olschki
- Les Incunables
- Library of Congress
- Libreria Musicale Italiana
- Lichtdruck
- Lito Immagine Editore
- Lumen Artis
- Lund Humphries
- M. Moleiro Editor
- Maison des Sciences de l'homme et de la société de Poitiers
- Manuscriptum
- Martinus Nijhoff
- Maruzen-Yushodo Co. Ltd.
- MASA
- McGraw-Hill
- Militos
- Millennium Liber
- Müller & Schindler
- Nahar and Steimatzky
- National Library of Wales
- Neri Pozza
- Nova Charta
- Oceanum Verlag
- Odeon
- Orbis Mediaevalis
- Orbis Pictus
- Österreichische Staatsdruckerei
- Oxford University Press
- Pageant Books
- Parzellers Buchverlag
- Patrimonio Ediciones
- Pattloch Verlag
- PIAF
- Pieper Verlag
- Plon-Nourrit et cie
- Prestel Verlag
- Princeton University Press
- Prisma Verlag
- Priuli & Verlucca, editori
- Pro Sport Verlag
- Propyläen Verlag
- Pytheas Books
- Quaternio Verlag Luzern
- Reales Sitios
- Recht-Verlag
- Reichert Verlag
- Reichsdruckerei
- Riehn & Reusch
- Roberto Vattori Editore
- Rosenkilde and Bagger
- Roxburghe Club
- Salerno Editrice
- Sarajevo Svjetlost
- Schöck ArtPrint Kft.
- Scolar Press
- Scrinium
- Scripta Maneant
- Scriptorium
- Siloé, arte y bibliofilia
- SISMEL - Edizioni del Galluzzo
- Sociedad Mexicana de Antropología
- Soncin Publishing
- Sorli Ediciones
- Stainer and Bell
- Studer
- Styria Verlag
- Sumptibus Pragopress
- Szegedi Tudomànyegyetem
- Taberna Libraria
- Tarshish Books
- Taschen
- Tempus Libri
- Testimonio Compañía Editorial
- Thames and Hudson
- The Clear Vue Publishing Partnership Limited
- The Facsimile Codex
- The Folio Society
- The Marquess of Normanby
- The Richard III and Yorkist History Trust
- Tip.Le.Co
- TouchArt
- TREC Publishing House
- TRI Publishing Co.
- Trident Editore
- Typis Regiae Officinae Polygraphicae
- Union Verlag Berlin
- Universidad de Granada
- University of California Press
- University of Chicago Press
- Urs Graf
- Vallecchi
- Van Wijnen
- VCH, Acta Humaniora
- VDI Verlag
- VEB Deutscher Verlag für Musik
- Verlag Anton Pustet / Andreas Verlag
- Verlag der Münchner Drucke
- Verlag für Regionalgeschichte
- Verlag Styria
- Vicent Garcia Editores
- W. Turnowsky
- Waanders Printers
- Wiener Mechitharisten-Congregation (Wien, Österreich)
- Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft
- Wydawnictwo Dolnoslaskie
- Xuntanza Editorial
- Zakład Narodowy
- Zollikofer AG