Canon Grandel’s Prayerbook
Codicological Analysis
Even now, five hundred years after the manuscript was originally created, this personal prayerbook has a lot to tell us about how it was made.
Overview
136
Folios on Vellum
There are 136 folios in the current prayerbook, with 4-6 miniatures excised after rebinding and some additional missing leaves concluding prayers.
15
Four-line Champ Initials with Foliate Detail
Beautiful champ initials introduce each section of the prayerbook, decorated in gold, red, blue, and brown, with delicate foliate details in gold or white.
190
Two-line Champ Initials
These initials appear in gold on backgrounds of red, brown, and blue. They indicate the beginning of shorter prayers within the larger Hours.
Rubrication
in Latin & French
Rubrication appears throughout the text in the form of instructions for the use of the various prayers, psalms, and canticles used to pray the Hours.
Decorative initials & Flourishes
In red & blue ink
There are hundreds of single-line initials throughout the text which appear in both red and blue. The Litany of the Saints in particular is decorated with pen flourished helix designs.
Codicological Analysis
Dimensions
Full codex: 130 mm x 90 mm
Text area: 80 mm x 55 mm
Single column
16 lines, unfoliated
Codicological Analysis
Collation
Determined with support from the original bookseller, and observations from my own physical analysis:
i + I 8 (7 missing) + 11 8 – VI 8 + VII 4 + VIII 8 + IX 4 (4 missing) + X 8 + XI 8 + XII 4 (4 missing) + XIII 8 + XIV 7 (7 solo) + XV 8 – XIX 8 + i
Codicological Analysis
Bindings
The gatherings are sewn onto three supports with single lengths of cord “raised up from, rather than recessed into, the book block” and then laced into three holes and secured to the paste-laminate book boards.
Source: Sargan, J. D, Jessica J Lockhart, Andrew J Nelson, D. L Meert-Williston, and Alexandra Gillespie. 2022. “The Ghosts of Bindings Past: Micro-Computed X-Ray Tomography for the Study of Bookbinding.” Digital Philology 11 (1): 142–73. https://doi.org/10.1353/dph.2022.0009.
Ghost Bindings
In 2022, a group of scholars collaborated to scan Canon Grandel’s Prayerbook using micro-computed X-ray tomography (µCT) to gain insight into how the book was bound.
This non-invasive method of codicological analysis revealed a great deal about the book’s physical characteristics – including evidence of “ghost bindings”, or remnants of the prayerbook’s original bindings, before it was rebound in the 18th century. Below is an image from their article, “The Ghosts of Bindings Past: Micro-Computed X-Ray Tomography for the Study of Bookbinding”, showing the current sewing supports alongside the original stitch holes.
Source: Sargan, J. D, Jessica J Lockhart, Andrew J Nelson, D. L Meert-Williston, and Alexandra Gillespie. 2022. “The Ghosts of Bindings Past: Micro-Computed X-Ray Tomography for the Study of Bookbinding.” Digital Philology 11 (1): 142–73. https://doi.org/10.1353/dph.2022.0009.
Explore Canon Grandel’s Prayerbook
Overview
Review the summary of findings.
The Holy Hours
Discover the prayerbook’s devotional prayers and offices.
History & Provenance
Explore the prayerbook’s history and religious context.