The Isabella Psalter ( BSB Cod.gall. 16), also called the Psalter of Queen IsabellaWier 24 or the Psalter of Isabella of England, is a 14th-century volume containing the Book of Psalms, named for Isabella of France, who is herself depicted in it; it was likely a gift upon her betrothal or marriage. The illuminated manuscript is also notable for its

bestiary A bestiary (from ''bestiarum vocabulum'') is a compendium of beasts. Originating in the ancient world, bestiaries were made popular in the Middle Ages in illustrated volumes that described various animals and even rocks. The natural history a ...

Origin and history of the manuscript

The psalter was produced ca. 1303–1308. Like its "closest relation," the Tickhill Psalter, it shows a French influence and is similar in content and style to the Queen Mary Psalter and the Ormesby Psalter. Like the Queen Mary and Tickhill psalters, and like the Egerton Gospel and the Holkham Picture Bible, some of its captions and illustrations can be traced to the 12th-century ''

Historia scholastica The ''Historia Scholastica'' is a twelfth-century Biblical paraphrase written in Medieval Latin by Petrus Comestor. Sometimes called the "Medieval Popular Bible", it draws on the Bible and other sources, including the works of classical scholars an ...

''; all these 14th-century manuscripts may have "a thirteenth-century Parisian antecedent, reflected in the Tours Genesis window" (in reference to a window in the

clerestory In architecture, a clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey) is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, ''clerestory'' denoted an upper l ...

of the Tours Cathedral). It is currently held in the Bavarian State Library,

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

.Egbert, ''The Tickhill psalter'' 11. According to Donald Drew Egbert, the illuminators belong to the same group that illuminated the Tickhill Psalter. Art historian Ellen Beer, however, states that while there are similarities, Egbert is too quick to identify the illuminators (whom he connects to four other manuscripts as well). According to Beer, two of the illuminators responsible for the

Psalter of St. Louis Two lavishly illustrated illuminated manuscript psalters are known as the Psalter of Saint Louis (and variants) as they belonged to the canonized King Louis IX of France. They are now in Paris and Leiden, and are respectively good examples of F ...

can be recognized in the Isabella Psalter.

Description

The psalter measures and consists of 131 parchment pages. The first section is a calendar, with two illuminations per page, followed by a section with illuminations of scenes from the Old Testament and a complete bestiary, which (as in the Queen Mary Psalter) are executed as

marginalia Marginalia (or apostils) are marks made in the margins of a book or other document. They may be scribbles, comments, glosses (annotations), critiques, doodles, drolleries, or illuminations. Biblical manuscripts Biblical manuscripts have ...

.Stanton, ''The Queen Mary psalter'' 44.

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * * * * * * * * * * *

External links

Isabella Psalter
at the Bavarian State Library {{Authority control 14th-century illuminated manuscripts Illuminated psalters Bestiaries