Liber Horarum by Gerard David
A highpoint of 15th century Flemish illumination: the Liber Horarum by Gerard David! The eponym of this splendid manuscript was the miniaturist Gerard David, who contributed 15 miniatures to the visual adornment. Gerard David is one of the most important Flemish artists of his time. Primarily active as a panel painter, he also created some of the finest illumination that late–15th century Flemish manuscripts had to offer. The so-called Liber Horarum by Gerard David enchants with its quintessentially high-quality artistic decoration.
Liber Horarum by Gerard David
A highpoint of 15th century Flemish illumination: the Liber Horarum by Gerard David! The eponym of this splendid manuscript was the miniaturist Gerard David, who contributed 15 miniatures to the visual adornment. Gerard David is one of the most important Flemish artists of his time. Primarily active as a panel painter, he also created some of the finest illumination that late–15th century Flemish manuscripts had to offer. The so-called Liber Horarum by Gerard David enchants with its quintessentially high-quality artistic decoration.
A Noble Cover and Exuberant Splendor
The noble exterior of the manuscript already indicates its splendid content. A dark-brown leather cover with terrific embossing and gorgeous silver claps protects the gem. When one opens the book, a true blaze of color gushes over all the pages! Handsome miniatures of biblical scenes are framed by broad decorative frames. These are filled with the most gorgeous depictions of flowers, fruits, small animals, and insects, but also grotesque figures of fantasy. The pages of text are resplendent with numerous small, colorful initials – depicted in blue, red, and gold and gorgeously designed – in addition to the large historiated initials made of artfully ornamental patterns.
The Master Miniaturist
This splendor largely comes from the hand of a gifted artist. Gerard David (ca. 1455–1523) is considered to be the last great Flemish illuminator of his time. The reputation of Bruges painting grew exuberantly with such great names as Jan van Eyck and Simon Bening. David, who learned his craft from Hans Memling, was actually active as a panel painter. Nevertheless, he is also known for several high-quality miniatures, which he made for important patrons. These make Gerard David one of the most important miniaturists from Bruges at the turn of the 16th century.
A Testimonial to the Art of the Ghent-Bruges School
The so-called Liber Horarum by Gerard David can be found today in the famous library of El Escorial. It is a small, personal book of hours measuring 15.7 x 11.5 cm. The year 1486, which is recorded in the frame of the miniature of St. Lazarus, indicates that the prayer book originated during the beginning of David’s career in Bruges. The 470 pages of the manuscript are adorned with 37 miniatures altogether. 15 of these 37 miniatures come from the hand of Gerard David. The rest are based on works by famous Flemish miniaturists like the Master of the Dresden Book of Hours, the Master of Edward IV of England, and other artists from the Ghent-Bruges school.
The Wonderful Miniatures
At the same time, the miniatures impress with their profound expressiveness and the high artistic quality of the painting. Beholding the pictures evokes powerful feelings in a wonderful way. Additionally, the composition of the scenes, their grandiose perceptivity, is a sign of the outstanding quality of this illumination. The miniature at the beginning of the book of the Madonna with Child is particularly beautiful, it appears deeply immersed and introverted. With her left hand, which peeks out of a sumptuous blue cloak, she extends a graceful flowering twig to the Christ child in her right hand. This perfectly through-composed miniature comes from the hand of Gerard David and is only one of the grandiose testimonials of his art!
Codicology
- Alternative Titles
- Gerard David Book of Hours
Gebetbuch des Meisters von Brügge
Liber Horarum de Gerard David
Liber Horarum von 1486
Gerard David Stundenbuch
Liber Horarum von Gerard David
Liber Horarum of Gerard David - Size / Format
- 470 pages / 15.7 × 11.5 cm
- Origin
- Belgium
- Date
- 1484–1486
- Epochs
- Style
- Genre
- Language
- Illustrations
- 37 miniatures, 15 of these are full-page by Gerard David
- Artist / School
- Gerard David (1460–1532)
Master of the Dresden Book of Hours
Master of Edward IV of England
Ghent–Bruges school
Liber Horarum by Gerard David
Massacre of the Innocents
It is said that the original martyrs were the innocent little boys that were slaughtered on the orders of King Herod, and the look of horror on this mother’s face is unmistakable. “Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.” (Matt. 2:16).

Liber Horarum by Gerard David
Madonna with Child
This magnificent miniature is as artistically refined as Gerard David’s panel paintings and is a fine example of his masterful use of light and shadow. It is a beautiful, atmospheric scene with an intimate aesthetic and perfect composition. The Virgin Mary’s left hand sticks out from under her sumptuous blue cloak, highlighted with gold pen strokes, and holds out a flower to the baby Jesus.
Rather than having individual halos, both mother and child share a subtly-drawn golden aura. This introverted miniature is wonderfully contrasted by its exuberant golden frame, which is filled with red carnations, white lilies, blue irises and bell flowers, and more. A bird and various insects round out this gorgeous marginalia.

#1 Liber Horarum de Gerard David
Language: Spanish
- 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