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IM-9879: (160x110mm) Original leaf from a manuscript Book of Hours. 20 lines of text, ruled in red, written in Latin in angular gothic book-hand script on animal vellum. Rubrics in red & line endings in red & blue, with liquid gold infill. Three two-line illuminated initials in white & gray acanthus with floral infill on gold grounds; twelve illuminated one-line initials and eight line extenders in gold on alternating red & blue grounds. Elaborate panel borders in acanthus & floral motifs (including columbines – symbol of the Holy Spirit). 

France: Rouen; Use of Rouen, c. 1490.

The two-line illuminated “V” begins the hymn: “Veni…” (Come, Holy Spirit, Creator blest, and in our souls take up Thy rest; come with Thy grace and heavenly aid to fill the hearts which Thou hast made…). The two-line illuminated “B” begins Psalm 1 complete: “Beatus…” (Blessed is the man who hath not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stood in the way of sinner...). The two-line illuminated "Q" opens Psalm 2:  " Quare..." (Why have the Gentiles raged... 

Books of Hours are personal prayer books of a devout and status-conscious society and are not only works of art, but cultural documents of their time.  They reveal a unique combination of sacred and secular imagery - made of the finest materials, by the best craftsmen, for a small audience that could both appreciate and afford them.