The main prayer book used in medieval Europe was divided into eight sections, or hours that were meant to be read at specific times of the day. Each section contained prayers, psalms, hymns, and other readings intended to help the reader secure salvation for himself and his departed loved ones.
A very popular type of text during the Middle Ages used for private devotions. It contains a calendar as well as psalms, prayers, hymns and biblical readings for recitation during the eight canonical hours of the day, known as the Hours of the Virgin.
A prayer book intended for lay use in private or family devotions. Books of hours typically contain a compendium of prayers and devotions dedicated to the Virgin Mary and recited or sung at the canonical "hours" (eight set times during the day). To this core were appended other elements such as a calendar, penitential psalms, litanies, suffrages, etc. Elaborate versions contain a full cycle of miniatures as well as involved marginal decorations. Books of hours form the most popular and abundant of all surviving medieval manuscripts.
A medieval European prayer book. It was to be prayed at designated times throughout the day. It contained psalms and prayers for everyday as well as for departed loved ones and other needs.
A book intended for private devotion that contains the daily offices as well as the office of the Virgin, the office of the dead, and the seven penitential psalms. Books of hours were often sumptuously decorated with illuminations and historiated initials.
a compendium of devotional texts that takes its name from its one essential text, the Hours of the Virgin, or more properly the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary
a prayer book that is painted with religious images
a prayer book used by laymen for private devotion, containing prayers or meditations appropriate to certain hours of the day, days of the week, months or seasons
a prayerbook - usually medieval
a book for the laity containing Psalms and prayers to be read at the times of the daily office
Book with prayers for laymen, conveniently ordered by day. They listed relevant texts for every liturgical hour of the day. These books were very popular in the Roman Catholic Church from the end of the 14th through the 16th century. Some books of hours were richly illuminated, which made them so expensive only the wealthiest could afford them. More information.
The most popular prayer book of the late thirteenth through sixteenth centuries, the book of hours was designed primarily for the laity. It is composed of a number of different texts, but the core text is a cycle of daily prayers dedicated to the Virgin Mary and recited at eight fixed hours during the day, hence its name. These books were usually illuminated, often by the most gifted artists of the period.
book containing readings and prayers to be read by members of the laity at the times of the daily office
Also known as 'primer' or 'horae', a Book of Hours would contain a collection of prayers, psalms, scriptural excerpts and devotional texts intended for the use at home. Horae are organised around the canonical hours of the Catholic Church, hence the name. Often illuminated in silver and gold leaf, horae were a must-have for the wealthy. An absolute bestseller from the late 14th to the late 16th century. More information.
Also called a primer or horae. This variation of the breviary was mostly used in private devotion. Its central text, the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin, is modeled on the Divine Office and represents a shorter version of the devotions performed in the eight canonical hours. The text, known from the tenth century, entered into lay use by the end of the twelfth century, often being attached to a psalter.
An illuminated manuscript with very specific contents. Usually a Book of Hours models the Divine Office (Brown 23). By the time the Kirby 1 was created in the late 15th century, books of hours were standardized. All books of hours contain a liturgical calendar, a litany of the saints, suffrages, the Office of the Dead, and the Penitential Psalms. They often differed in specific contents according to who commissioned them, where they lived, and when they lived.
An illuminated manuscript used primarily from the 13th through 16th centuries; a personal prayer book for the laity to abide by the Christian church's daily protocol of devotional prayer. Glossary Glossary (History of Reading)
A Book of Hours is a prayer book to be read in private by ordinary people. Private recitation of prayers was an expression of the lay person's desire to imitate the prayer life of the religious and clergy. Books of Hours were extremely popular from the late thirteenth century onwards, and sold in immense numbers. They were often profusely illuminated in gold, and decorated with miniatures and elaborate borders.
A book of hours is the most common type of surviving medieval illuminated manuscript. Each book of hours is unique in one way or another, but all contain a collection of texts, prayers and psalms, along with appropriate illustrations, to form a reference for Catholic Christian worship and devotion.
Milan, Biblioteca Trivulziana, Cod. 470 is a 15th century Book of Hours. It was made in a French-Burgundian scriptorium. It measures 131 by 89 mm and has 366 folios.
