I have another listing with a similar page from the same book. Offered here is an authentic antique illuminated manuscript leaf from a large ecclesiastical choir book or antiphonal. This impressive double-sided leaf is handwritten on vellum or parchment and features liturgical Latin, square-note Gregorian chant notation on red four-line staves, rubrication, decorative painted initials, and a large illuminated initial rendered in green, blue, red, white, and sepia tones. Apostolorum Petri et Pauli. This identifies the manuscript as part of the liturgy for the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul. The principal chant begins. “Nunc scio vere quia misit Dominus angelum suum”. This translates approximately as. Now I know truly that the Lord has sent his angel. The text concerns Saint Peter’s miraculous deliverance from the hand of Herod and is associated with the liturgy honoring Saints Peter and Paul. The reverse contains further Gregorian chant, several decorative initials, and the Latin phrase. “Domine probasti me et cognovisti me”. O Lord, you have examined me and known me. Both sides bear the Roman numeral LXXVII, representing page 77 of the original choir book. Large-format antiphonals were traditionally placed on a lectern so that multiple singers could read the notation together during religious services. The leaf measures approximately 21.5 inches by 15 inches. Based on its script, notation, pigments, foliation, and decorative style, the manuscript is believed to date from approximately the late 16th to early 17th century and is likely Southern European. The precise date, country of origin, and attribution have not been independently authenticated. Condition is consistent with considerable age and handmade construction. There is age-related discoloration, waviness, staining, surface wear, edge wear, small marks, and natural variation in the vellum. A pale circular area and other irregularities are visible near the lower left portion of the leaf. Please examine all photographs carefully. An exceptional piece for a collection of illuminated manuscripts, Gregorian music, Catholic religious art, early calligraphy, or historic European decorative arts. It would be especially striking displayed in a museum-style double-sided glass frame.
