Books of hours are the most common medieval illuminated manuscripts to survive today. Used for private devotions, their central text, the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin (or Hours of the Virgin), is a shorter version of the Divine Office.
This leaf is from a pocket-size Flemish book of hours created in Bruges. The Italianate (humanistic) script and the Florentine white vine-stem borders suggest that the manuscript might have been created for a member of the Italian community in Bruges. The Latin text and borders are outlined with gold and the borders include representations of birds and a blue medallion surrounded by four angels. The gold gilt historiated initial “D” (Domine) contains a miniature of the Virgin and Child. The text seen here displays the rubric (heading or direction) and incipit (the first few words of the text) which are place markers.
Rubric: Incipit officium beate marie virginis secundum consuetudinem romane curie. Ad matutinas.
Incipit: Domine labia mea aperies
Rubric: Here begins the office of the Blessed Virgin Mary, according to the course of the Romans
Incipit: O Lord, open my lips