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Trebizond Gospels
(Manuscripts and Rare Books)
This Gospel Book was probably made in Constantinople in the mid twelfth century and is remarkable for the fine execution and monumental quality of its full-page miniatures. The opening for the Gospel of Matthew is missing, but the other three Gospels are prefaced with a pair of miniatures each: the respective Evangelist on the left and a scene from the Gospel story on the right. The combination of St. John with the Raising of Lazarus is one found only in this manuscript. The text was copied by two scribes with distinctly different hands. One of them must have painted the ornament on fol. 175r, which contains curious animal figures.
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.
Monastery of Saint George of Peristera near Trebizond (?); Pellikidis Collection, Trabzon, Turkey, 1924 (?) [mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 2004 | Illuminating the Word: Gospel Books in the Middle Ages. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
| 1997 | The Glory of Byzantium. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. |
| 1986 | Byzantine Gold: Illumination in Greek Manuscripts. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1984-1985 | Illuminated Manuscripts: Masterpieces in Miniature. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1973 | Illuminated Greek Manuscripts from American Collections; An Exhibition in Honor of Kurt Weitzmann. Princeton University Art Museum, Princeton. |
| 1959 | The World as a Symbol: An Exhibit of Medieval Art. Queens College, Flushing. |
| 1957 | Byzantine Manuscript Illumination. Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin. |
| 1947 | Early Christian and Byzantine Art. Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore. |
| 1940 | Arts of the Middle Ages. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Boston. |
Geographies
Constantinople
(Place of Origin)
Ottoman Empire (Place of Binding)
Measurements
Overall H: 12 11/16 x W: 9 in. (32.3 x 22.8 cm); Folio H: 12 5/8 × W: 9 1/16 in. (32 × 23 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.531
