Amherst Hours

This book of hours was written in Dutch in the fifteenth century for the use of Utrecht. The Hours of the Virgin and of the Cross are accompanied here by the Dutch translation of Henry Suso's "Cursus aeternae sapientiae," a text that was particularly popular for private devotion in the Netherlands. Once owned by the English collector Lord Amherst, the manuscript is exceptional for its extensive illumination. Webs of foliage cover every margin, most sprouting medallions containing flora and fauna. The divisions in the text are marked by twenty richly painted full-page miniatures, often accompanied by related marginalia. Further illumination in the form of historiated and foliate initials marks minor breaks in the text, and the overall effect is a visual feast for the reader.

Provenance

Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.

Reynold Gideon Bowyer, Goettingen, Germany [date and mode of acquisition unknown];
William, Baron Amherst, London, before 1908 [mode of acquisition unknown]; Amherst Sale, London, December 3, 1908, no. 462; Lady William Cecil Sale, London, December 12, 1911, no. 57; Bishop (?), London, 1911 by purchase; Sotheby Sale, London, January 17, 1921, no. 58; Herzberger, London, 1921, by purchase; Henry Walters, Paris, 1925, by purchase [through Paul Gruel (?)]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.