Illuminated Manuscripts of Christ

(Les Très Riches Heures du duc de Berry, Folio 173v - The Entry into Jerusalem the Musée Condé, Chantilly.


The Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry is usually referred to as "le roi des manuscrits enluminés" or "the king of the illuminated manuscripts", but it is also a pinnacle in the entire history of painting. Commissioned by Jean, Duc de Berry in 1413, it was painted by the Limbourg brothers who left it unfinished at their (and the Duc's) death in 1416. The Duc Charles I de Savoie commissioned Jean Colombe to complete the painting of the manuscript between 1485-1489. The typical medieval manuscript called a book of hours is an abbreviated form of the breviary which contained the Divine Office recited in monasteries. The books of hours were composed for the lay people who wished to incorporate elements of monasticism into their devotional life. Reciting the hours typically centered upon the recitation or singing of a number of psalms, accompanied by set prayers.