Creative Commons License
Alphabet Book
The medieval alphabet is illuminated in two different styles. Without any accompanying text, the original purpose of the book remains unclear, but scholars have suggested that it was a sample or model book for manuscript illuminators, or that it was intended as a gift. The book was rebound in the eighteenth century, and in the same century extensive notes, which have since been erased, were made alongside the initials.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 2015-2016 | Henry Walters, Léon Gruel, and the Reinvention of the Medieval Manuscript . |
| 2012 | Paradise Imagined: Images of the Garden in the Islamic and Christian World. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
| 2002-2003 | The Artful Book: Selections from a Contemporary Collection of Books by Artists. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
| 1991 | The Gothic Revival: The Illuminated Manuscript in Medieval and Modern Times. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1984-1985 | Illuminated Manuscripts: Masterpieces in Miniature. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1985 | Manuscripts and Facsimiles. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1959 | The Medieval Craftsman and His Modern Counterpart. Indiana University Art Museum, Bloomington; Newcomb Art Gallery, Tulane University, New Orleans. |
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 3/13/1989 | Examination | examined for technical study |
| 8/28/2015 | Treatment | examined for digitization; media consolidation |
| 4/15/2016 | Examination | examined for condition |
Geographies
France, Paris (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 4 5/16 x W: 3 1/8 in. (11 x 8 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
W.200
