Medieval Manuscripts in the d'Alzon Library: 4b. Gradual leaf (St. John the Baptist)

Origin: France, c. 1600

Provenance: Purchased in France and donated to the d'Alzon Library by Fr. Donat Lamothe A.A. ca. 2000.

Physical description: 35 x 25 cm. Square notation on red four-line staff. Humanistic book script (a type of script emulating Roman capitals that began in Italy ca. 1400 and spread to the rest of Western Europe ca. 1500. The first antiphons of each Mass are introduced with large historiated initials (see below); other initials are situated in unframed squares with vine décor. The margins are stained with fingerprints, suggesting heavy use.

Further information: Like the other leaves from the same gradual, 4b contains the incipits of chants used in the Mass. Although the selection of antiphons indicates that these Masses are for the feast of St. John the Baptist, only the P initial on the verso side depicts this saint (identified by the lamb and cross-shaped staff). The D-initial on the recto side depicts a scene from the life of St. John the Evangelist. According to legend, John was given a cup of poisoned wine in Ephesus. Before drinking it, he blessed it, causing the poison to come out in the form of a serpent. A small winged serpent is visible in the upper left-hand corner of the initial. (This iconography was identified by Prof. Thomas P. Miles, who referred to Alonso Cano's depiction of this scene painted between 1636 and 1638.)

The depiction of St. John the Baptist in the P-initial is particularly remarkable for the delicate shading of the saint's face and folded clothing. The three-dimensional quality of this illumination, together with the humanist script, situates this manuscript in a "Renaissance" context as opposed to the "Gothic" style of the scripts and initials in 2, 3, 5, and 6.

In addition to parts of the ordinary (Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus Dei, Magnificat), the leaf contains the following chants for the Feast of St. John the Baptist: