Word and Image: Illuminated Manuscripts

Leaf from a Psalter: Initial D with Monks Singing, ca. 1495

Girolamo Dai Libri

Source: Girolamo Dai Libri: Leaf from a Psalter: Initial D with Monks Singing (12.56.4) | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art

In a time before the Internet, before mass-production, even before the printing press, the illuminated manuscript was not just a book, but a work of art.

The term illuminated manuscript refers specifically to those decorated with gold or silver paint, but the term has grown to include any embellished manuscript. These illuminated manuscripts, mostly from the medieval art period, demonstrate how much time and effort was put in to book making before the printing press. While manuscripts continued to be illuminated after the invention of the printing press, they appeared much less frequently and were usually only collected by the wealthy. In some cases, illuminated manuscripts are the only example of painting from a certain time or area.

Leaf from a Manuscript of Valerius Maximus, ca. 1380–90

Workshop of Pierre Remiet

Source: Charles V Manuscript Leaf [French] (31.134.8) | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Illuminated manuscripts are important to consider when thinking about word and image, because they are some of the earliest forms of combining word and image. The art form has died out for the most part, in favor of either illustration-free books, or illustrations aimed at children. Very rarely are books decorated in this style in our modern era. However, we must consider the effect of these manuscripts on those who would have seen them: this could have been the viewers' only experience with art in their lifetime.

While I appreciate the artistic value of these manuscripts, they also make me think about how lucky we are today to be exposed to so much literature and art. These books are truly beautiful, but I cannot imagine one book being the extent of my experience with the medium.