Leaves from a Psalter by William de Brailes
William de Brailes is considered to be the unsurpassed master of 13th century English illumination. In his works, unbelievable inventive power and masterful artistry meet deep faith and precious materials. Unfortunately, one of his most outstanding works only exists today in a few fragments: a psalter from Oxford, originating ca. 1240. Only seven pages, stored today in Cambridge and New York, offer a glimpse into the glory of William de Brailes’ art. As an additional exceptional feature, the master immortalized himself in a minute portrait in one of the illustrations!
Leaves from a Psalter by William de Brailes
Manuscript 330 of the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, along with a leaf in the Morgan Library in New York represent an inestimable treasure in the history of illumination: seven pages from a long-lost psalter by the English miniaturist William de Brailes in the 13th century. This psalter probably originated ca. 1240 in Oxford, where the artistic genius was active. William de Brailes (active 1230–1260) is considered to be an exceptionally-talented painter and miniaturist. The seven pages of this compendium belong among the best of the surviving works of this grandiose artist!
A Stunning Visual Experience
The seven surviving pages of the psalter present the following depictions: the Last Judgement, the Fall of the Angels, a page with scenes from Christ’s childhood, scenes from the history of Cain and Abel, the Tree of Jesse, the enthroned Christ and King David, and finally the Wheel of Destiny. Luminous colors and glimmering gold characterize the first impression that the pages leave with the beholder. Extraordinarily creative, unusual and gorgeous compositions form the base of the exceptional visual experience: golden and colorful frames with round, half-circle, or mandorla-shaped picture fields, or one or two great primary miniatures with medallions in the corners of the frame give an inside view of the art of this exceptional painter. Pages full of rich imagery and exuberant luster!
William de Braile Immortalizes Himself
One detail makes these pages something very special: on one of the pages, the depiction of the Last Judgement, a signature of William de Brailes can be found! This is not merely a simple signature, but is actually a portrait: amidst the group of lost souls, a figure with a tonsure can be recognized, who is saved by the archangel Michael. In his hands he holds a scroll with the name William de Brailes. Such “self-portraits” were most unusual at this time, nonetheless, de Brailes is one of the first artists to have signed his work!
Codicology
- Alternative Titles
- Blätter aus einem Psalter von William de Brailes
- Size / Format
- 7 leaves / 22.1 × 14.4 cm
- Origin
- United Kingdom
- Date
- Ca. 1240
- Style
- Language
- Illustrations
- 7 leaves with full-page illuminations on golden background
- Artist / School
- William de Brailes (fl. ca. 1230 – ca. 1260)
Leaves from a Psalter by William de Brailes
King David the Musician
Appearing in the lower register of a full-page miniature beneath an image of Christ surrounded by the Four Evangelist Symbols, King David is depicted playing three different instruments. He strums a harp in the primary medallion while plucking a dulcimer in the lower right corner and plays a stringed instrument with a bow in the lower left corner, possibly a vielle. Medieval music was undergoing a revolution in the 13th century that included a proliferation of instruments and styles.

Leaves from a Psalter by William de Brailes
Wheel of Fortune
With her hands turning the golden spokes of the wheel, Fortuna is enthroned in the center of the miniature without a blindfold, as is common. On the left, a young man in the ascent says, “I am borne again to the stars” while an enthroned king at the top says, “I exalt on high”. A falling figure on the right laments, “Reduced, I descend” and the dying figure at the bottom says, “Lowest, I am ground by the wheel”.
The rest of the outer ring consists of twelve roundels showing the ages of man from infancy to death beginning at the bottom-left. Eight more half-roundels with scenes from the life of Saint Theophilus the Penitent fill the inner ring. The three cycles illustrate the life of man as shaped by fortune, by time, and by choice.

#1 Leaves from a Psalter by William de Brailes
Language: English
- 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
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Egypt
- Ethiopia
- France
- Germany
- Hungary
- India
- Iran
- Iraq
- Israel
- Italy
- Japan
- Luxembourg
- Mexico
- Morocco
- Netherlands
- Peru
- Poland
- Portugal
- Serbia
- Spain
- Sri Lanka
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Syria
- Turkey
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom
- United States
- Uzbekistan
- Aboca Museum
- Akademie Verlag
- Akademische Druck- u. Verlagsanstalt (ADEVA)
- Aldo Ausilio Editore - Bottega d’Erasmo
- Alecto Historical Editions
- Alkuin Verlag
- Almqvist & Wiksell
- ARS
- Ars Magna
- ArtCodex
- AyN Ediciones
- Azimuth Editions
- Bärenreiter-Verlag
- Belser Verlag
- Belser Verlag / WK Wertkontor
- Bernardinum Wydawnictwo
- BiblioGemma
- Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana (Vaticanstadt, Vaticanstadt)
- Bibliotheca Palatina Faksimile Verlag
- Bibliotheca Rara
- Boydell & Brewer
- Brepols Publishers
- British Library
- C. Weckesser
- Caixa Catalunya
- Canesi
- CAPSA, Ars Scriptoria
- Caratzas Brothers, Publishers
- Circulo Cientifico
- Club Bibliófilo Versol
- CM Editores
- Collegium Graphicum
- Collezione Apocrifa Da Vinci
- Comissão Nacional para as Comemorações dos Descobrimentos Portugueses
- Coron Verlag
- CTHS
- D. S. Brewer
- De Agostini/UTET
- De Schutter
- Deuschle & Stemmle
- Deutscher Verlag für Kunstwissenschaft
- DIAMM
- Droz
- E. Schreiber Graphische Kunstanstalten
- Ediciones Boreal
- Ediciones Grial
- Edilan
- Editalia
- Edition Leipzig
- Edition Libri Illustri
- Editiones Reales Sitios S. L.
- Éditions de l'Oiseau Lyre
- Editions Medicina Rara
- Editorial Casariego
- Editorial Mintzoa
- Editrice Antenore
- Edizioni Edison
- Egeria, S.L.
- Eikon Editores
- Electa
- Eos-Verlag
- ET&B
- Eugrammia Press
- Extraordinary Editions
- Facsimile Editions Ltd.
- Facsimilia Art & Edition Ebert KG
- Faksimile Verlag
- Folger Shakespeare Library
- Franco Cosimo Panini Editore
- Fundación Hullera Vasco-Leonesa
- G. Braziller
- Gebr. Mann Verlag
- Giovanni Domenico de Rossi
- Giunti Editore
- Graffiti
- Grafica European Center of Fine Arts
- Guido Pressler
- Guillermo Blazquez
- Helikon
- Henning Oppermann
- Herder Verlag
- Hes & De Graaf Publishers
- Hoepli
- Houghton Library
- Hugo Schmidt Verlag
- Idion Verlag
- Il Bulino, edizioni d'arte
- ILte
- Imago
- Insel Verlag
- Instituto de Estudios Altoaragoneses
- Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia
- Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana - Treccani
- Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato
- J. Thorbecke
- Jugoslavija
- Karl W. Hiersemann
- Kasper Straube
- Kaydeda Ediciones
- Kurt Wolff Verlag
- La Liberia dello Stato
- La Linea Editrice
- La Meta Editore
- Lambert Schneider
- Leo S. Olschki
- Les Incunables
- Libreria Musicale Italiana
- Lichtdruck
- Lumen Artis
- Lund Humphries
- M. Moleiro Editor
- Maison des Sciences de l'homme et de la société de Poitiers
- Manuscriptum
- Maruzen-Yushodo Co. Ltd.
- MASA
- McGraw-Hill
- Militos
- Millennium Liber
- Müller & Schindler
- National Library of Wales
- Nova Charta
- Odeon
- Orbis Mediaevalis
- Orbis Pictus
- Österreichische Staatsdruckerei
- Oxford University Press
- Parzellers Buchverlag
- Patrimonio Ediciones
- PIAF
- 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
- Reichert Verlag
- 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
- Stainer and Bell
- Styria Verlag
- Sumptibus Pragopress
- Szegedi Tudomànyegyetem
- Tarshish Books
- Taschen
- Tempus Libri
- Testimonio Compañía Editorial
- 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
- Trident Editore
- Typis Regiae Officinae Polygraphicae
- University of California Press
- University of Chicago Press
- Urs Graf
- Vallecchi
- Van Wijnen
- VCH, Acta Humaniora
- VDI Verlag
- Verlag Styria
- Vicent Garcia Editores
- Wiener Mechitharisten-Congregation (Wien, Österreich)
- Xuntanza Editorial
- Zollikofer AG