[Ansteorra] For those of you with $185, 000 just lying around...

[Diane Rudin]

I don't believe it is a fake at all.  The illumination style is exactly that of the mid-13th century, as is the script.  In the 13th and 14th centuries, students put themselves through university (especially, but not exclusively, in France) in part through income gained by churning out exactly this sort of inexpensive, lightly-decorated bible to sell.  It shows all the signs of having been re-bound in the 19th century, for a library judging by the notation on the book cover.  The pigment colors are exactly like those on my collection of authentic manuscript pages as well as in manuscripts I have examined in museums and university libraries, but which I have been unable to replicate exactly either with modern purchased paints, or by making my own pigments following period recipes.  I have also examined Victorian re-creations of medieval objects, and 
they always get the colors wrong -- they're too bright.  The foxing (age spotting) is also consistent with period vellum wear, and the vellum itself is on the cheap side, again consistent with the medieval student bibles.  

If this is a fake, or a re-creation, someone went through more than $185,000 worth of materials and time to do it.

--Serena Lascelles, OL / Diane Rudin, art historian



----- Original Message ----
> From: Bree Flowers <evethejust at gmail.com>
> To: "Kingdom of Ansteorra - SCA, Inc." <ansteorra at lists.ansteorra.org>
> Sent: Mon, May 3, 2010 2:07:20 PM
> Subject: Re: [Ansteorra] For those of you with $185, 000 just lying around...
> 
> I don't know... if I had that much extra cash to bid on a fake, orrather a 
> recreation, I'd rather pay an artist in the society to do it and get it 
> customized to my taste.

And no, I don't for a second believe that item is 
> what he claims it tobe. Not to say it isn't a lovely thing, just that it is 
> not what hesays.

~Eve

On Mon, May 3, 2010 at 11:19 AM, Annwn 
> Shona <
> href="mailto:lady.annwn at gmail.com">lady.annwn at gmail.com> wrote:
> I 
> was window shopping on eBay today, and came across this:
> 
> http://cgi.ebay.com/1250-AD-MEDIEVAL-MANUSCRIPT-ANTIQUE-HOLY-BIBLE-VTG-15-/350314106103?cmd=ViewItem&pt=Antiquarian_Collectible&hash=item5190590cf7
> 
> (or, item # 350314106103)
>
> An entire bound 13th century 
> illuminated bible....
>
> I thought I'd pass this along...quite 
> interesting...darn it though, I spent
> my allowance this week....maybe 
> one of you guys wants to bid on it ;)
>
> -Lady Annwn