As recent studies emphasize, the theological sophistication inherent in the pictorial programs of many luxury thirteenth- and fourteenth-century devotional manuscripts points to surprisingly ambitious intellectual and spiritual goals of elite lay patrons and recipients. The iconographic content of the late thirteenth-century Bute Psalter (Los Angeles, J. Paul Getty Museum, MS 46), likely made for a northeastern French or Flemish noblewoman, speaks to such aspirations. The manuscript is one of only six "fully illustrated" French Psalters of the thirteenth century. The majority of subjects found in the decorated initials of these Psalters can be traced to established exegetical traditions. Yet unlike most of its peer manuscripts, the Bute Psalter lacks the important textual apparatus of the rubrics designating the subjects of the Psalms and canticles, an element arguably indispensable for the reader-viewer's interpretation and appreciation of the manuscript's more unusual pictorial subjects. Despite this apparent deficiency, dynamic movement and gestures, in tandem with novel approaches to the mise-en-page, stimulate sophisticated meditational trajectories and signify the hardships that attend successful devotional practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Gesta is the property of International Center of Medieval Art and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
