Martyrology of Usuard
This manuscript is arguably the most beautiful of the “Soft Style” despite the fact that each page is filled with scenes of gruesome violence, martyrdoms to be precise: 700+ medallion miniatures with scenes of saints either meeting a violent end or being entombed. Despite their size, these scenes are incredibly detailed and feature elaborately patterned backgrounds. Floral frames connect these medallions and surround the exquisitely written text, including red/blue and gold leaf initials. Created ca. 1400 in Prague, this manuscript contains the 9th century text of the Martyrology of Usuard, written by the monk Usuard (d. 877) at the behest of Charles the Bald. This is a spectacular specimen from the court of King Wenceslas IV of Bohemia (1361–1419), which was one of the grandest in Europe at the time.
Martyrology of Usuard
Sometime in the middle of the 9th century a Benedictine monk named Usuard (d. 877) produced a manuscript that travelled widely over the centuries and clearly influenced the illumination of the Late Middle Ages. This manuscript is the Martyrology of Usuard, which was commissioned by Charles the Bald (823–877) according to the prologue. This codex is unanimously considered among art historians to be one of the most noble and extravagantly illuminated manuscripts of the Gothic era. The text of the work deals with saints, how they endured their martyrdoms, and is adorned with impressive miniatures. The manuscript from ca. 1400 contains 700+ colored miniatures with golden ornaments in the International Gothic or Soft Style.
Who was Usuard?
The Benedictine monk was a member of the Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris and lived in the 9th century. Usuard was an important member of the monastic order and was famous for his astonishing Martyrology, which was adapted countless times over the centuries. In the prologue of the manuscript, it is told how the monk presented his work to Charles the Bald. Ca. 1400 the codex was expanded by a few saints and received its breathtaking book adornment at the court of Wenceslas of Bohemia.
Courtly Illumination
The Martyrology played an important role in international courtly book art. The pictures of the manuscript are typical examples of the exquisite Bohemian painting of the Middle Ages and show distinctive influences of international art during the transition from the 14th to the 15th century. The miniatures show saints, who are either in the agonies of their martyrdom or whose remains are being buried. Each picture is captured in lively colors and is lavishly decorated with gold embellishments. The depictions are in round medallions, which are elegantly framed and connected with one another by naturalistic plant tendrils.
A Well-Travelled Manuscript
Usuard brought his codex along on his journey to Spain, where he was sent to collect important relics. His Martyrology remained in Catalonia for centuries, and later came into the possession of important aristocratic houses in Austria, Hungary, Sweden, and Italy. In the 17th century the valuable manuscript was attained by the Museu Diocesà in the Spanish city of Girona, where it is still housed today.
Codicology
- Alternative Titles
- Martirologio de Usuardo
Martyrologium von Usuard
Martirologio di Usuardo
Martyrologe d’Usuard
Martirológio de Usuardo - Size / Format
- 252 pages / 46.3 × 33.0 cm
- Origin
- Czech Republic
- Date
- Ca. 1400
- Epochs
- Style
- Genre
- Language
- Illustrations
- 705 miniatures illuminated in gold
- Content
- Catalogue of martyrs and other saints
- Patron
- Wenceslas IV (1361–1419), King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor
Martyrology of Usuard
Martyrdom of St. Ignatius of Antioch
Saint Ignatius of Antioch was a disciple of John the Apostle and Bishop of Antioch who was martyred in the Coliseum in Rome on the order of the Emperor Trajan. Although his feast day is celebrated today on October 17th, the medieval calendar of saints placed it on February 1st, and so this medallion miniature is found alongside other martyrs for that month. He is shown stripped to the waist and wearing his bishop’s miter as he is attacked by lions before a red background with golden tendrils.
Martyrology of Usuard
St. Pontianus of Spoleto and St. Germain of Izmir
This martyrology takes the form of a calendar, with each page presenting the saints associated with the respective dates. These are typically presented in the form of 2–5 medallion miniatures connected by multicolored tendrils running along the margins. This page is more innovative and breaks with this strict image program.
The body of text on this pages has a frame of floral interlace on three sides with a bas-de-page miniature on the fourth. It is a masterful depiction of a terrifying dragon with red eyes holding St. Germain in his mouth, who hangs limply in a green tunic and blue tights. A miniature incorporated into the floral frame depicts an angel visiting Pontianus of Spoleto, who was imprisoned and beheaded by the Romans on January 14th, 175.
#1 Martirologio de Usuardo
Language: Spanish
(3,000€ - 7,000€)
- 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