Our Book of the Month for April, part of Books Unchained — our monthly series exploring the remarkable volumes preserved in Wells Cathedral’s historic Chained Library.
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The Book of Hours
German, 15th Century, Manuscript
Books of Hours (horae) were the most popular personal prayer books of the Middle Ages, used by laypeople to mark the fixed “canonical hours” throughout the day. Because they were so widely cherished and used, they are now one of the most commonly surviving types of illuminated manuscript.
Although each Book of Hours is a unique, handcrafted object, most contain a core collection of psalms and prayers tailored to the spiritual needs of their owner. Designed for the wealthy laity, these portable volumes served as constant companions for daily devotion. They held a particularly important place in the lives of women, acting as personal expressions of literacy and piety, and were often passed down from mother to daughter as treasured heirlooms.
Our manuscript is a striking example of 15th-century craftsmanship, most likely produced in southern Germany, possibly in the Bavaria or Salzburg regions, between 1450 and 1480. The text is written in a late medieval script known as Hybrida. While some headings appear in Latin (such as Sancta Maria), the main body of the text is written in the vernacular Early New High German of the period.
The volume is richly decorated with floral borders and full-page miniatures that combine sacred New Testament imagery with charming glimpses of medieval rural life. This style reflects the Nonnberg tradition of illumination popular at the time. The fine decoration, together with the manuscript’s small size, alludes to the likelihood that it was made for a female owner.
Although our book was rebound in the 1980s, traces of its original clasps remain visible. These would have helped keep the volume tightly closed, protecting the vellum pages from warping in humid conditions.
Keep the story going…
Join us next month as another hidden treasure of the Library is unchained. Until then, why not visit the Cathedral’s Chained Library and see this extraordinary volume for yourself?
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