The History, Art, and Palaeography of the Manuscript Styled The Utrecht Psalter.
London: Samuel Bagster and Sons, 1876/. First edition. Three large folding photogravure fascsimile plates. Numerous woodcuts and vignettes. Corners and binding extremities rubbed and lightly worn. A few small bumps on the front cover. Folding plates lightly foxed. 20* unopened. A contemporary note on the text tipped in. Armorial bookplate of John William Willis Bund on front end pastedown. Dark brown cloth decoratively stamped in gilt and blind with bevelled edges. Octavo. [6], iv, iv, [2], xxiv, 318, [+10, publisher's ads] pp. Item #16139
"The Utrecht Psalter" is a ninth century illuminated psalter and a key masterpiece of Carolingian art. It is, in all likelihood, the Netherlands' most valuable manuscript. It is recognized for its one hundred and sixty-six lively pen illustrations, which accompany the psalms and other texts in the manuscript, which includes canticles and hymns (for example, the "Te Deum" and "Athanasian Creed"). Between the years of 1000-1640, the Utrecht Psalter was in England where it had a profound influence on Anglo-Saxon art, giving rise to what is known as "the Utrecht style." The psalter is thought to have been created near Reims given the fact that it is similar in style to the Ebbo Gospels. The original manuscript arrived at Canterbury in 1000 a.d. and remained there for two centuries.
John William Willis Bund (1843-1928) studied at Eton and Caius College, Cambridge where he completed a B.A. in 1865 with honors in law. In addition to being appointed the Vice-Lieutenant of the County of Worcester in 1924 and receiving the CBE in 1918, he also wrote a great deal about the history of the church in Wales; however, his views were contradictory of other scholars who also wrote in the same field. Some of his works include Black Book of St. David's (1902) and The Celtic Church of Wales (1897).
Price: $300.00