polity kingdom of france medieval
Hours of Jeanne d'Evreux
Book of hours (c.1324–1328 CE), grisaille and colour on vellum, by Jean Pucelle, Paris. Made for Queen Jeanne d'Evreux, wife of Charles IV of France. Tiny volume (92 × 62 mm) containing 25 full-page miniatures and 700 marginalia. The masterpiece of Parisian Gothic illumination: introduces Italian spatial architecture (Duccio's box rooms) and grisaille monochrome into French illumination. Currently at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
Notes
- ·The manuscript is attributed to Jean Pucelle on the basis of style and comparison with the signed Breviarium Belleville (BnF lat.10483).
- ·The grisaille technique (grey monochrome with occasional colour accents) was an innovation that became a hallmark of Parisian court illumination.
- ·The tiny format and intimate scale suggest it was made for private devotion — the queen could hold it in one hand.
- ·The Annunciation page (fol. 16r) shows Gabriel and the Virgin in a three-dimensional Gothic architectural setting drawn in perspective — directly influenced by Duccio's architectural treatment in the Maestà. This is among the earliest instances of Italian spatial perspective in Northern manuscript art.
- ·The bas-de-page drolleries (lower margin vignettes) include scenes of children playing games (hoodman blind, bubble-blowing) — some of the earliest genre-like depictions of childhood in Western art.
- ·Purchased by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1954 from the Wildenstein collection for $1 million — an unprecedented price for a manuscript at the time.