If you have ever met me, I talk a little too much about how much I love my job. As a reference assistant, I am able to help people from all around the world to explore our collections. By doing so, I am able to familiarize myself with the many interesting and unique collections within the SCRC. Being able to experience history in a multitude of different ways is the best part of my job. Most recently, I have been captivated by our collection of illuminated manuscripts.
Illuminated manuscripts are handwritten books that have been adorned with vibrant colors, artwork, and even gold. These embellishments sometimes include small and large illustrations, initials, borders, or other decorative elements. Initially, monasteries created illuminated manuscripts as tools for church services such as prayer books, hymnals and daily devotions. While many of these manuscripts are religious in nature, there are many different variations that can be used personally or practically.
Books of Hours, for example, were personal books meant to inspire these devotions in daily life while antiphoners were practical books for music performance. Manuscript books were created by and for the use of individuals and no two copies are exactly the same. As a student working towards a career in special collections, I find that this is the most interesting part of working with manuscripts. History is embedded into the pages, and the fun lies in the mystery.
Red, blue, and black floral and geometric designs on tan-colored vellum. A page of the Antiphoner featuring a large repair on the lower right hand side of the page.
The Gradual of Saints, also known as the Weiss Antiphoner, contains liturgical music of the Church which consists of Gregorian chant or monophonic harmony. This music was used to accompany the text of the mass and the canonical hours. The codex is a surprisingly large and evidently well-loved Dominican Gradual of Saints which can be dated c. As a musician myself, it is extremely interesting to see early musical notation and how performers approached practice. Unlike music used for entertainment in later eras like the Romantic Period, this use of music was used exclusively for Church services.
