No comments about Landscapes In Argentinian Photographic Postcards of the 20th Century.

No comments about The Birth of the Codex.

No comments about Kitchen Sink Press: The First 25 Years (Kitchen Sink Comic Art Reference Series ; No. 1).

1 comments about The Palaeography of Gothic Manuscript Books: From the Twelfth to the Early Sixteenth Century (Cambridge Studies in Palaeography and Codicology).

1. Great introduction to a variety of scripts that will be of use to beginners and advanced paleographers alike. Intelligently illustrated and well enough written to read straight through, but so sensibly organized that it makes a great reference work. Its intelligent use of the wealth of information provided in recent decades by the great catalogues of dated manuscripts will make it a standard work for years to come. My only possible reservation regards nomenclature. Derolez is a proponent of a modified version of the system of nomenclature advocated by Lieftinck and urges us not to use such standard terms as Gothic and Anglicana in the usual way. Since this is such a great book, it will strongly influence practice. Still readers might wish to take this recommendation with a pinch of salt.

No comments about Heritage Press: Annotative Bibliography, Volume 3, Authors L-R, 2nd Edition.

No comments about Darwin: The Evolution of the Man.

No comments about Cigarette Card Values.

No comments about Hollywood Movie Posters, 1914-1990.

1 comments about The Used Book Lover's Guide to the Midwest/Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Kentucky, and West Virginia.

1. This book has a lot of great information for the bookhunter. It covers the Midwest, and would be especially helpful for those that live there. My wife and I have travelled around and always bring this book to find hidden bookshops. The only problem with the book is that the occasional shop is no longer in existence or has moved, so call ahead of a visit as the book suggest. Any book lover would love this book!!

5 comments about Painted Prayers: The Book of Hours in Medieval and Renaissance Art.

1. This is a beautiful book. It has full color images througout and contains examples of several pieces that I have not seen in other books. I have a coleection of lllumination books and am thrilled with this addition.



2. good illustrations, intertaining book



3. The Pierpont Morgan Library's collection of manuscripts and printed works contains some truly beautiful works of art. I was privileged to see some of them at an exhibit in the Kimbell Art Museum. This book was offered as a catalog of the exhibit and I immediately bought it as a reminder of what I had seen. The illustrations in this book, though not quite as visually stunning, are nevertheless representative of the originals. Bibliographic information is rather sparse but the further reading section is nice.

   Painted Prayers gives both the structure of the book itself and the reason behind its popularity during the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance. It was the laity in general, and more specifically the female laity, that owned these works as a kind of, "direct, democratic, and potentially uninterrupted access to God, the Virgin Mary, and the saints." (p.14). It is fascinating to see the incorporation of Christian, and sometimes pagan, symbols and iconography, and even humor, in the miniatures and marginalia of the Books of Hours. The miniatures often depicted biblical, or historical, scenes in modern settings and dress. Patrons would often have their portraits, coats of arms, monograms, or intials incoprorated into the Books of Hours that they had commissioned. With the advent of printing in the 15th century Books of Hours, with their pictures, became even more successful as they could now reach out to a wider audience.

   If you ever have the opportunity to see an exhibit featuring Books of Hours I recommend you see it. Failing that, Painted Prayers is a good stand in.




4. While this book contains chapters of material e.g. introduction, calendar, Gospel Lessons, Hours of the Virgin, Pentitential Psalms etc., the core of the book is the descriptions of the illustrations themselves. These description provide a variety of information - bits of biography of the artist, history of the manuscript (confirmed and confirmed), information regarding the style, the imagery etc. The "chapter" material provides samples of the texts, the development of the specific portion of the Book of Hours, etc. This provides the overall context for the materials.

   The indices provide access by manuscript, artist, early owners; an appendex provides the outline of the major offices by incipit (first phrase) to place individual illustrations in the overall context of the prayer hour.

   Don't be intimidated - the text is easily followed but one unfamilar with the prayer book content or with illuminated manuscripts. But you can also enjoy the book simply going through the pictures - like a stroll through a museum without a docent or tape.




5. This well-organized survey of the Book of Hours in Medieval and Renaissance art takes the reader through the various parts of the book of hours illustrating both the historical and artistic development from the earliest manuscript examples to incunabula. Lavishly illustrated with examples taken only from the Pierpont Morgan Library, where Wieck is a curator, the book is also a mini catalog of that collection. While the "reader" could fully enjoy this book by simply looking at the pictures, Wieck's text is full of illuminating tidbits. The book also contains some detailed descriptions of medieval liturgy and religious practices that may be of interest to some readers.