Oxford

0723 — <p>This illuminated Bible leaf produced in Oxford circa 1250–1275 is a striking example of 13th-century English Gothic manuscript illumination at the height of Oxford's bookmaking tradition. Such portable Bibles were made for scholars clergy and monastic readers prized for their fine script compact format and richly decorated initials. This leaf preserves Romans 14:6 to the end the Prologue to Corinthians and Corinthians 1:10 marking a pivotal moment in the Pauline Epistles.</p><p>At the opening of Corinthians the page features a splendid historiated initial "P" with Saint Paul holding a book and a sword his traditional attributes. The book symbolizes his writings; the sword refers both to his martyrdom and to his role as a defender of Christian doctrine. The initial is painted in vivid blue red and gold with delicate white highlights its elongated extension continuing down the margin. Paul's figure with rounded expressive eyes arched brows and flowing robes reflects the distinctive Oxford style closely related to the work of William de Brailes one of the leading English illuminators of the mid-13th century.</p><p>Beneath the initial a small marginal figure clings to the shaft of the letter while gazing upward—likely a fool or peasant. Such imagery common in English marginalia served as a foil to the wisdom of saints contrasting worldly folly with divine truth. The detail emphasizes the interplay between sacred and secular themes that characterizes Gothic manuscript art.</p><p>The parent volume was almost certainly produced in Oxford supported by stylistic evidence and 13th-century Arabic column numerals typical of Bibles used in academic contexts. Later ownership notes show the book passed through an English Carthusian house in the 14th century then through a distinguished line of collectors including Charles Kirkpatrick Sharpe Sir John Jaffray A.G. Thomas and Maggs Bros. The leaf was also recorded in the McCarthy Collection II 2019 no. 11 citing the present leaf as Maryland</p><p>This leaf demonstrates the artistic and intellectual culture of medieval Oxford where scholars scribes and illuminators produced some of the most sophisticated biblical manuscripts of the Middle Ages. It offers both a remarkable image of Saint Paul and a direct link to the devotional and academic world of 13th-century England.</p><p>Provenance summary:<br />Probably Oxford Carthusian house 14th c.<br />Charles Kirkpatrick Sharpe 1781-1851<br />Sir John Jaffray 1818-1901<br />A.G. Thomas 1911-1992 English bookseller<br />Maggs Bros. London 1997-1998<br />Private collection USA</p><p>Literature:<br />P. Kidd The McCarthy Collection II: Manuscripts 2019 no. 11.; citing the present leaf as Maryland private collection.</p> Illuminated Bible leaf on parchment