Who knew that East Anglia was a noted producer of illuminated manuscripts back in the fourteenth century? Some of the best psalters now known of were painted at Gorleston, near Great Yarmouth. One of the most famous, the Macclesfield Psalter, was bought for the nation and is now at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge.
There is no doubt it is a beautiful and lavish book, gorgeously decorated. What I find especially interesting about it, and apparently this is true of East Anglian illuminated manuscripts of the period generally, is the joy and inventiveness of the illustrations in the margins. The lower right image of the double page spread above is St Dunstan pulling the devil’s nose with a pair of tongs.
Also, the snail combat:
Eeek.
The hound ridden by the hare:
The ape doctor with bear patient:
The jousting animals:
The illustrator seems to be taking scenes of medieval life and turning them on their heads, in an early form of visual comedy. It’s definitely funnier than we normally expect in a piece of devotional literature meant for private prayer and contemplation, but fun was considered a legitimate part of devotion in the Middle Ages, valued for keeping you awake and concentrating during extended prayer sessions.
Maybe it’s just nice to know that East Anglia was considered just as much a hotbed of creativity then as it is now.
Read more about the Macclesfield Psalter (including why it picked up the name Macclesfield) on the Fitzwilliam’s site, and see more images here. The Psalter itself will be on display from the end of June til September 2009.Tags: animals dressed up · cambridge · east anglia · fitzwilliam museum · gorleston · illuminated manuscripts · illustration · macclesfield psalter · psalter1 Comment
[...] written before about East Anglian illuminated manuscripts – the area was a byword for particular beauty in [...]