Object #3: Hours of Blanche of Burgundy

Like other examples of books of hours, the Hours of Blanche of Burgundy helps to affiliate individuals with their ancestors and elevate their prestige. The Hours of Blanche of Burgundy is unique because it uses the Hours of Saint-Louis as a model for individuals to pattern their lives after. It is only included in rare occasions, and the inclusion of these hours in this manuscript helped to set the trend to include the Hours of Saint-Louis in one’s book of hours (Clemens and Graham, 192-199).

The Hours of Blanche of Burgundy, like other religious texts, contain ivy leaf illuminations. The approach to these illuminations is quite different than other Books of Hours and Psalters, though. In the Hours of Blanche of Burgundy, the ivy illuminations circle from the frame of the capitalized letter, and lead into the margin of the page. While this is similar to other texts, it is much simpler in design. The ivy is much more minimal than other instances, with way less actual leaves drawn and it’s decoration is the only one that extends into the margins of the page. It is also heart shaped, and possesses a soft delicate form unlike the pronged style of other examples.