Santa Clara University Scholar Commons Art and Art History College of Arts & Sciences 1983 Another Lectionary of the ‘Atelier’ of the Palaiologina, Vat. gr. 352 Kathleen Maxwell Santa Clara University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarcommons.scu.edu/a_ah Recommended Citation Maxwell, Kathleen "Another Lectionary of the ‘Atelier’ of the Palaiologina, Vat. gr. 352." Dumbarton Oaks Papers 37 (1983): 47‑58. © 1983, Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Trustees for Harvard University. Originally published in Dumbarton Oaks Papers 37. http://doi.org/10.2307/1291476 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the College of Arts & Sciences at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Art and Art History by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ANOTHER LECTIONARY OF THE "ATELIER" OF THE PALAIOLOGINA, VAT. GR. 352* KATHLEEN MAXWELL ugo Buchthal and Hans Belting recently manuscript may now be attributed to the first H published an outstanding group of fifteen group.5 Presently in the Vatican Library (Vat. gr. Byzantine manuscripts of the late thirteenth cen­ 352), the manuscript is written on 244 folios of fine tury which are related either by their ornament or white parchment measuring 321 X 239 mm.6 As is by their script. 1 The authors divided these biblical true of the three Lectionaries cited by Buchthal and or liturgical manuscripts into two groups on the Belting, the text of Vat. gr. 352 is divided into two basis of the style of their script: one consisting of columns with generous margins and, likewise, it seven Gospel manuscripts, a New Testament, and contains solely ornamental illumination. 7 The three Lectionaries and another comprising a Prax­ apostolos and three Psalters.2 The extraordinary the niece of the Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologus. Cf. ibid., quality of some members of the group can be gauged 100 ff. for an excellent summary of Theodora's activities. Cf. also D. M. Nicol, The Byzantine Family of Kantakouzenos (Cantecu­ by the fact that one manuscript, Vat. gr. 1208, has zenus): ca. 1100-1460, DOS, XI (Washington, D. C., 1968), 16 ff; been ranked with the finest products in the history and D. I. Polemis, The Doukai: A Contribution to Byzantine Proso­ of Byzantine illumination. 3 The learned biblio­ pography (London, 1968), 173 ff. and cf. infra, p. 51. Finally, Buchthal and Belting, Patronage, 91 ff., exercise caution in the phile, Theodora Palaiologina Raoulaina, has been use of the terms "atelier" and "scriptorium" with regard to this presented as the most logical candidate for the role group of manuscripts. There is little evidence that the scribes of group or "atelier" patron.4 Another Lectionary and painters worked together in the same studio. The manu­ scripts were probably completed within the span of a few years (cf. infra, note 63). *A Samuel H. Kress Fellowship for Dissertation Research 5 Ibid., on p. 95 the authors discuss several manuscripts which Abroad (1979-1980) is gratefully acknowledged in connection are paleographically related to the group. The most important with this paper. It was while I was engaged in research on an­ examples are Vat. gr. 356 and Vat. gr. 1523 (ibid., pis. 1 and 65). other 13th-century Byzantine manuscript (Paris, Bib!. Nat., gr. They also indicate that they are not aware of any other manu­ 54) that Vat. gr. 352 came to my attention. I am also very much script whose ornament is related to the group and which shares indebted to Prof. Robert Nelson of The University of Chicago the same script. for reading this manuscript and offering many invaluable sug­ 6 R. Devreesse, ed., Biblioteca Vaticana. Codices Vaticani Graeci, gestions. II: Codices 330-603 in Bibliotheca Vaticana (Vatican City, 1937), 1 H. Buchthal and H. Belting, Patronage in Thirteenth-Century 33 ff. Devreesse dated the manuscript to the 11th-12th centu­ Constantinople: An Atelier of Late Byzantine Book Illumination and ries; F. H. A. Scrivener, A Plain Introduction to the Criticism of the Calligraphy, DOS, XVI (Washington, D.C., 1978), 4-5. The fifteen New Testament, ed. E. Miller, 4th ed., vol. I (London, New York, manuscripts (and their abbreviations) are as follows: Athos, Cambridge, 1894), 353, dated the manuscript to the 11th cen­ Dionysiou 5 (D); Florence, Bib!. Mediceo-Laurenziana Plut. VI, tury; C. R. Gregory, Textkritik des Neuen Testament1, I (Leipzig, 28 (F); Athos, Lavra A 2 (L); Venice, Biblioteca Marciana gr. 1909), 434, dated it to the 13/14th centuries; K. Aland, Kurzge­ 541 (M); Oxford, Bodleian Library, Barocci 31 (0); Vatican Li­ fasste Lisle der griechischen H andschriften des N euen Testaments, I: brary, Vat. gr. 1158 (V); Location unknown (X); Baltimore, Wal­ Gesamtiibersicht (Berlin, 1963), 237 (l 540) dated the manuscript ters Art Gallery, W 525 (B); Mount Sinai, gr. 228 (C); Athos, to the 13th century. Cf. G. Prato, "Scritture librarie arcaizzanti lviron 30m (I); Athos, Stauronikita 27 (S); Vatican Library, Vat. della prima eta dei Paleologi e !oro modelli," Scrittura e Civilta, gr. 1208 (Vat); Athos, Stauronikita 46 (A); Paris, Bib!. Nat., gr. 3 ( 1979), 158 and note 26, for other examples of manuscripts 21 (N); and Paris, Bib!, Nat., suppl. gr. 260 (P). in the group vhich have been dated too early. I am grateful to 2 Ibid., 4-5, D, F, L, M, 0, V, and X comprise the Gospel Profs. Annemarie Weyl Carr and Robert Nelson for bringing manuscripts; B is the New Testament; C, I, and S are the three this source to my attention. For further bibliography on the Lectionaries; Vat is the Praxapostolos; and A, N, and Pare the manuscript, see P. Canart and V. Peri, Sussidi bibliografici per i Psalters. manoscritti greci della Biblioteca Vaticana, ST, 261 (Vatican City, 3 Ibid., 13 ff. and 78-96. 1970), 415 and Appendix h.erein. Note, however, that the ref­ 4 Vat. gr. 1158 (V) has monograms on fols. 5v and 6' which erence to W. A. Baehrens, Uberlieferung und Textgeschichte der la­ indicate that the manuscript belonged to a female member of teinisch erhaltenen Origeneshomilien zum Alten Testament (Leipzig, the Palaiologan family. Theodora Palaiologina Raoulaina was 1916), 173 is irrelevant. first suggested by H. Belting, Das illuminierte Buch in der spatby­ 7 Vat. gr. 352's ruling pattern is 20C2 in J. Leroy, Les types de zantinischen Gesellschaft (Heidelberg, 1970), 67 ff; cf. Buchthal reglure des manuscrits grecs, Editions du Centre National de Ia and Belting, Patronage, 6 and note 20, and 99 ff. Theodora was Recherche Scientifique (Paris, 1976), 6. The justification mea- 48 KATHLEEN MAXWELL manuscript's importance is enhanced by the pres­ The four remaining headpieces maintain an ex­ ence of a non-scribal colophon of the year 1375 cellent standard of quality, but are smaller in scale which indicates its exact location at this date. The and only one column in width. The pylon head­ present analysis will be concerned first with secur­ piece marking the beginning of the readings from ing Vat. gr. 352's position as the fourth Lectionary the Gospel of Matthew (fol. 44) is made up of simi­ manuscript of the first group through a compara­ larly colored palmettes circumscribed by a heart­ tive study of its ornamental headpieces, illumi­ shaped lozenge (fig. 2). 13 The overall proportions nated initials, and script style. The second half of of the headpiece find their best parallel on folio the paper will examine several entries in the Men­ 44v of Paris, Bibl. Nat. gr. 21 (N), while the use of ologium texts of the Lectionary manuscripts and alternating horizontal rows of heart-shaped palm­ conclude with a brief consideration of the histori­ ettes can best be compared to those found on folio cal circumstances and implications of Vat. gr. 352's 262 of the same manuscript.14 The motif was, how­ colophon. ever, a popular one in the atelier and was even se­ lected as a framing element for a miniature that ORNAMENTAL HEADPIECES was never completed on folio 128v of Athos, Stau­ ronikita 46 (A). 15 One might also note that the The title for the Easter Sunday readings on folio flanking ornamental gold spiral seen in figure 2 1 is framed by a magnificent, two-column, rectan­ has many points of comparison within the atelier, gular headpiece (fig. 1).8 Its blue, red, coral, green, including the manuscript in Paris just cited. 16 The and gold enamel-like colors are accentuated by the slightly smaller pylon headpiece at the beginning placement of the major palmettes against a white of the readings from the Gospel of Luke (fol. 69) painted ground. This combination results in a jewel­ in Vat. gr. 352 likewise utilizes a very common ate­ like impression and, for this reason, has been re­ lier motif (fig. 3). The Gospel manuscript whose ferred to as a "metallic" palmette by Buchthal and present whereabouts are unknown (X) provides one Belting. 9 It is a unique feature of the atelier and its example for comparison, but many more could be presence has been noted in manuscripts of both cited. 17 The use of a colored leaf in the ornamental groups. The closest parallel for the design of this gold spiral also has parallels in examples published headpiece is supplied by folio 1 of the Sinai Lec­ by Buchthal and Belting. 18 tionary 228 (C). 10 Vat. gr. 352 fills an important gap The gold band marking the beginning of the here in that it is more similar to C than the mate­ readings from the Gospel of Mark (fol. 99) is of rial which Buchthal and Belting had at their dis­ special interest in that it is a variation of the pseudo­ posal.