Book of Hours: Difference between revisions
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=Definition= | == Definition == | ||
[[File:A "book of hours" from the Metropolitan Museum of Art..jpg|thumb|The Annunciation from the Hours of Charles of France, 1495.<ref>Master Charles of France. ''The Annunciation from the Hours of Charles of France''. 1495, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.</ref>]] | [[File:A "book of hours" from the Metropolitan Museum of Art..jpg|thumb|The Annunciation from the Hours of Charles of France, 1495.<ref>Master Charles of France. ''The Annunciation from the Hours of Charles of France''. 1495, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.</ref>]] | ||
A Book of Hours is a devotional text that contains calendars of religious feasts and festivals, psalms, prayers, and other aids to meditation and reflection. This frequently included splendid illustrations, as well as elaborate calligraphy and binding. <ref> Robinson, Solveig C. | A Book of Hours is a devotional text that contains calendars of religious feasts and festivals, psalms, prayers, and other aids to meditation and reflection. This frequently included splendid illustrations, as well as elaborate calligraphy and binding. <ref> Robinson, Solveig C. ''The Book in Society: An Introduction to Print Culture''. Toronto, Broadview Press, 2014. </ref> Another definition says that they were a prayer book, but not used by priests, nuns, or any other religious leader, but by the ordinary people. They were acquired by nobles and urban people and helped expand literacy in the medieval eras.<ref>Wieck, Roger S.''Time Sanctified: The Book of Hours in Medieval Art and Life''. New York, George Braziller Inc., 1988, pp. 27.</ref> | ||
=History= | == History == | ||
During the high Middle | During the high Middle Ages, there was significant change in economic life from the shift from agrarian systems to modern commercial agriculture and mercantile trade. Due to this, artistic and intellectual culture began to show, starting the era of the Renaissance. During this era as well, Books of Hours became popular. It wasn't just popular around the rich folks either, but around normal, everyday citizens. This was impressive in the Medieval Europe was a largely illiterate society. However, as nobles who could read got ahold of these books, reading of these prayers books expanded and literacy exploded in Medieval Europe. For the first time, one book that was most popularly sold was produced for those with non-clerical hands.<ref>Wieck, Roger S. ''Time Sanctified: The Book of Hours in Medieval Art and Life''. New York, George Braziller Inc., 1988, pp. 33.</ref> | ||
== How | == How is it made? == | ||
Books of Hours were often produced in scriptoriums in the Middle Ages. However, in the 1200s, books began to be published by lay people (non-ordained people of the church) who made it their sole job to manufacture books. | |||
[[File:Vellum.jpg|thumb|The Magna Carta, written in Latin on vellum.<ref>"Vellum." ''Wikipedia'', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vellum. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.</ref>]] | |||
These books at the time were made of vellum. Vellum was typically made from the skin of sheep or calves. Smaller books could be made of one skin while larger books could have a sheet represent one animal. To make the ink, one would use carbon and add gum and water to create a permanent black. Another way was through iron gall, in which the sulphate of iron and oak apples is added to gum and water to produced a brownish ink. If one wanted to produce colored ink, it would have to be made from substances of animals, vegetables, and minerals. Some colors were easier to find, but others were not. This was the case of Lapis luzuli, which was found in the caves of Afghanistan. For gold ink, the user would have to ground up pure gold into powder and mix it into paint or have the mineral beaten into a leaf which would then be laid over the adhesive and burnished. The specific script was used for these books was Lettre Bâtarde and started being used in the 1400s in Flanders. | |||
=Citations= | The illustrations in Books of Hours were not only called illustrations but illuminations. Illumination is defined as the art of decorating books with colors and metals. These metals were usually gold or silver. <ref>"How is a Book of Hours Created?" ''Truman State University,'' https://exhibits.truman.edu/bookofhours/about/how-is-it-made/. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.</ref> | ||
== Effect on the Publishing Industry == | |||
The Book of Hours was one of the first books to be mass-produced for an audience that wasn't just religious leaders and nobles. With the invention of the printing press, Book of Hours became accessible to professional, merchant, and artisan classes. While the luxury, fancy editions were still limited to the elite, it became normalized for the general public to own a book, which at the time was only meant for the rich and elite. Also, because of this, literacy began to rise in Europe and eventually throughout other countries. <ref>Warren, Maureen. "The Mass-Produced Original: Printed Books of Hours" ''Krannert Art Museum'', 2016, https://kam.illinois.edu/resource/mass-produced-original-printed-books-hours. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.</ref> | |||
== Citations == | |||
[[Category: Glossary]] | [[Category: Glossary]] | ||
<references /> | <references /> | ||
[[Category:Religion]] | |||
[[Category:History]] | |||
Latest revision as of 08:20, 12 November 2025
Definition
A Book of Hours is a devotional text that contains calendars of religious feasts and festivals, psalms, prayers, and other aids to meditation and reflection. This frequently included splendid illustrations, as well as elaborate calligraphy and binding. [2] Another definition says that they were a prayer book, but not used by priests, nuns, or any other religious leader, but by the ordinary people. They were acquired by nobles and urban people and helped expand literacy in the medieval eras.[3]
History
During the high Middle Ages, there was significant change in economic life from the shift from agrarian systems to modern commercial agriculture and mercantile trade. Due to this, artistic and intellectual culture began to show, starting the era of the Renaissance. During this era as well, Books of Hours became popular. It wasn't just popular around the rich folks either, but around normal, everyday citizens. This was impressive in the Medieval Europe was a largely illiterate society. However, as nobles who could read got ahold of these books, reading of these prayers books expanded and literacy exploded in Medieval Europe. For the first time, one book that was most popularly sold was produced for those with non-clerical hands.[4]
How is it made?
Books of Hours were often produced in scriptoriums in the Middle Ages. However, in the 1200s, books began to be published by lay people (non-ordained people of the church) who made it their sole job to manufacture books.
These books at the time were made of vellum. Vellum was typically made from the skin of sheep or calves. Smaller books could be made of one skin while larger books could have a sheet represent one animal. To make the ink, one would use carbon and add gum and water to create a permanent black. Another way was through iron gall, in which the sulphate of iron and oak apples is added to gum and water to produced a brownish ink. If one wanted to produce colored ink, it would have to be made from substances of animals, vegetables, and minerals. Some colors were easier to find, but others were not. This was the case of Lapis luzuli, which was found in the caves of Afghanistan. For gold ink, the user would have to ground up pure gold into powder and mix it into paint or have the mineral beaten into a leaf which would then be laid over the adhesive and burnished. The specific script was used for these books was Lettre Bâtarde and started being used in the 1400s in Flanders.
The illustrations in Books of Hours were not only called illustrations but illuminations. Illumination is defined as the art of decorating books with colors and metals. These metals were usually gold or silver. [6]
Effect on the Publishing Industry
The Book of Hours was one of the first books to be mass-produced for an audience that wasn't just religious leaders and nobles. With the invention of the printing press, Book of Hours became accessible to professional, merchant, and artisan classes. While the luxury, fancy editions were still limited to the elite, it became normalized for the general public to own a book, which at the time was only meant for the rich and elite. Also, because of this, literacy began to rise in Europe and eventually throughout other countries. [7]
Citations
- ↑ Master Charles of France. The Annunciation from the Hours of Charles of France. 1495, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.
- ↑ Robinson, Solveig C. The Book in Society: An Introduction to Print Culture. Toronto, Broadview Press, 2014.
- ↑ Wieck, Roger S.Time Sanctified: The Book of Hours in Medieval Art and Life. New York, George Braziller Inc., 1988, pp. 27.
- ↑ Wieck, Roger S. Time Sanctified: The Book of Hours in Medieval Art and Life. New York, George Braziller Inc., 1988, pp. 33.
- ↑ "Vellum." Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vellum. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
- ↑ "How is a Book of Hours Created?" Truman State University, https://exhibits.truman.edu/bookofhours/about/how-is-it-made/. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
- ↑ Warren, Maureen. "The Mass-Produced Original: Printed Books of Hours" Krannert Art Museum, 2016, https://kam.illinois.edu/resource/mass-produced-original-printed-books-hours. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
