CODEX ROTUNDUS

UM LIVRO, UMA JOIA

RBMS has just acquired this wonderful facsimile of an absolutely unique late-medieval manuscript, the Codex Rotundus.
Measuring just over 9 centimeters in diameter, this unusual manuscript is a marvel of 15th-century book production. 
The manuscript consists of 266 folios containing a lavishly illuminated Book of Hours written in Latin and French. 

Remnants of a coat of arms in the opening initial “D” of the manuscript strongly suggest that this private devotional book was created for Adolf of Cleves (1425-92), nephew of Phillip the Good and cousin to Charles the Bold, successive Dukes of Burgundy.
 The manuscript includes 3 full-page miniatures and an additional 30 historiated initials depicting biblical scenes, incidents from the life of Christ, and images of various saints. 

Although the book doesn’t preserve the name of the artist or artists responsible for its magnificent illuminations, various stylistic elements firmly point to its origins in the milieu of the Burgundian court (specifically to the area of Bruges).
 The original Codex Rotundus is held by the Dombibliothek Hildesheim (Hs728) in Germany.