The Donne Hours: A Codicological Puzzle

Simon Marmion, Donne Hours: John Donne Kneeling Before His Guard, ca. 1480, Louvain-la-Neuve, Archives de l'Université

The Donne Hours (Louvain-la-Neuve, Archives de l’Université, Ms A2) manuscript is well known to art historians under the name of the Louthe Hours. Produced by Simon Marmion of Valenciennes in collaboration with the Master of the Dresden Prayerbook working in Bruges, this manuscript lies at the center of a group of books of hours produced by artists of different provenances. This paper looks more closely at how this wonderful book of hours was produced.

DOI: 10.5092/jhna.2014.6.1.2

Appendix

Description of the Donne Hours (Louvain-la-Neuve, Archives de l’Université, ms A2)

1. Contents: Book of Hours for Sarum use

2. Text: fol. 1–12v: Calendar; fols. 13–88: Hours of the Virgin, Sarum use; fols. 89–90: Antiphon to the Trinity; fols. 90v–95: Five Joys of the Virgin; fols. 95v–118: Suffrages; fols. 119–145: Penitential Psalms and Litany of the Saints; fols. 146–149: incipiunt XV Psalmi; fols. 150–154: Obsecro Te; fol. 154v: prayer (16th century?); fol. 156: indications of the beginnings of the seasons in Latin and French (16th century?)

3. Codicological description:IV modern paper leaves + 157 parchment leaves + IV modern paper leaves, 155 x 105 mm, justification: 88 x 66 mm (calendar: 17 lines of text); 90 x 62 mm (remainder of the volume: 15 lines of text), modern numbering in pencil, 1–26, 3–68, 76, 8–118, 126, 136+2 (+89, 90–95, +96), 144, 154+4 (+101, +102, 103, +104, 105–106, +107, 108), 166+4 (+109, +110, 111–112, +113, 114–115, +116, 117–118), 17–198, 203, 214, 225, 231, 242, some illegible signatures (fol. 50, 97) of which little remains owing to the trimming of the leaves.

4. Provenance: Sir John Donne (partly overpainted arms on fols. 13 and 100v); Baron Louis de Pélichy (descendant of the Van Huerne family from Bruges), Counsellor at the Ghent Court of Appeal (note on the second flyleaf at the beginning); given by the latter in 1920 to the University of Louvain library (Restoration Office of the University of Louvain Library) via Joseph Casier, President of the Ghent Commission of Monuments.

5. Illustration: 50 miniatures: fols. 1–12. margins decorated with roundels depicting the labours of the months; fol. 13. Annunciation; fol. 26. Visitation; fol. 51. Nativity; fol. 58. Annunciation to the Shepherds; fol. 63. Adoration of the Magi; fol. 67v. Circumcision; fol. 72. Flight into Egypt; fol. 76. Coronation of the Virgin; fol. 89. Trinity; fol. 90v. Annunciation; fol. 91v. Nativity; fol. 92v. Resurrection; fol. 93v. Ascension; fol. 94v. Coronation of the Virgin; fol. 95v. Beheading of Saint John the Baptist; fol. 96v. Saint John the Evangelist at Patmos; fol. 97v. Saint Anne teaching the Virgin to read; fol. 98v. Saint Catherine; fol. 99v. Saint George killing the dragon; fol. 100v. John Donne kneeling before his guardian angel; fol. 101v. Saint Anthony; fol. 102v. Saint Eligius; fol. 103v. Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian; fol. 104v. Saint Fabian; fol. 105v. Saint Christopher; fol. 106v. Murder of Saint Thomas Becket; fol. 107v. Saint Quiricus and his mother Saint Julietta; fol. 108v. Saint Michael; fol. 109v. Saint Gabriel; fol. 110v. Saint Erasmus; fol. 111v. Saint Barbara; fol. 112v. Saint Leonard; fol. 113v. Saint Thomas of Hereford; fol. 114v. Saint Nicholas; fol. 115v. Saint Margaret; fol. 116v. Saint Luke; fol. 117v. Saint Mary Magdalene; fol. 119. David in prayer.

6. Binding: gold-stamped black morocco binding (19th century) with two worked metal clasps and gilt edges.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the University Archives, especially Françoise Mirguet; Jacqueline Couvert of the Laboratoire d’étude des oeuvres d’art par les méthodes scientifiques (Musée de Louvain-la-Neuve) for providing laboratory instruments and assistance for the XRF analyses; and Michael Lomax for his careful translation.

Imprint

Review: Peer Review (Double Blind)
DOI: 10.5092/jhna.2014.6.1.2
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Recommended Citation:
Anne Dubois, "The Donne Hours: A Codicological Puzzle," Journal of Historians of Netherlandish Art 6:1 (Winter 2014) DOI: 10.5092/jhna.2014.6.1.2