Canon Grandel’s Prayerbook
Manuscript Contents
As personal prayerbooks, Books of Hours can tell us a lot about the people who owned and used them. Canon Grandel’s prayerbook contains unique variations on the typical order of hours and prayers included in French Books of Hours during the medieval period.
Prayerbook Contents
The Holy Hours
While medieval books of hours usually begin with a liturgical calendar, Canon Grandel’s prayerbook is missing its calendar. Instead, it begins with two minor sequences of hours, which appear before the Hours of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Gospel readings, which typically appear at the beginning of books of hours, appear only after the Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary, along with the penitential psalms, the suffrages and Litany of the Saints. The prayerbook ends defective with the Office of the Dead, missing its final prayers, which have been cut out for an unknown reason.
The Hours of the Holy Cross
Focused on meditating on Christ’s sufferings upon the cross, the Hours of the Holy Cross honour Christ’s Passion and appeal to His mercy.
The Hours of the Holy Spirit
The Hours of the Holy Spirit praise the spiritual gifts of grace, virtue, and wisdom bestowed by the Holy Spirit.
The Hours of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Modeled on the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary which appears in the Divine Office (used exclusively by monastics and clerics), the Hours of the Blessed Virgin Mary contain eight sets of prayers to mark certain hours of the day:
Matins, said in the middle of the night;
Lauds, said before dawn;
Prime, said at sun-up;
Terce, said mid-morning;
Sext, said at midday;
None, said in mid-afternoon;
Vespers, said at sunset;
Compline, said before retiring to bed.
Lauds to Compline
Pericopes (Gospel Readings)
While the pericopes typically appear before the Hours of the Blessed Virgin Mary, in Canon Grandel’s prayerbook, they appear afterwards. Rubricated instructions guide the reader through readings from the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) according to days of the week.
Marian Prayers
Two Marian prayers follow the pericopes.
The Obsecro te (seeking the joys, sorrows, and graces of the Blessed Virgin) was a favourite prayer in 15th century books of hours, and the O Intemerata (seeking the intercession of the Blessed Virgin and St John the Apostle) has its origins in the 12th century.
The Latin noun endings in the Obsecro te and O Intemerata prayers to the Virgin are masculine, indicating that this prayerbook was created for men’s use.
Penitential Psalms
Seven penitential psalms are intended to be said along with the Litany of the Saints:
Psalm 6 (Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am weak);
Psalm 31 (Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven);
Psalm 37 (Because thy arrows are fastened in me);
Psalm 50 (Have mercy on me O God, according to thy great mercy);
Psalm 101 (Lord, let my cry come to thee);
Psalm 129 (Out of the depths I cry to thee, O Lord);
Psalm 142 (Lord, hear my prayer, with thine ears receive my petition).
These psalms have been well-used – you can see smudges on the vellum, which may have been left by fingers turning these precious pages. Psalm 129 in particular appears to have been a favourite.
Suffrages
Suffrages are longer prayers to individual Saints, which express devotion and request their continued prayers. Suffrages were often very personal petitions to the owner’s favourite Saints.
This prayerbook contains suffrages to St. John the Baptist, the Blessed Virgin, and St. Michael the Archangel, among others.
The Litany of the Saints
The Litany of the Saints invokes the names of the great Saints of the Catholic Church to request their intercessions on the penitent’s behalf. The Litany in this particular prayerbook contains the names of some rare and unique local Saints – St. Bavo (from Ghent), St. Gaugerica, and St. Guislenus (from Tournai).
Deliver us, O Lord
After invoking the names of the Saints, the Litany moves to addressing God directly, praying for deliverance from suffering and the many evils which plague humanity.
Further Detail
Office for the Dead
The Office for the Dead is a set of prayers, psalms, and canticles honouring the souls of the dearly departed. Medieval practice was to pray this office on the Feast of All Souls, on the anniversary of a loved one’s death, and on a departed loved one’s birthday. These prayers are born of hope that the departed pass through purgatory to eternal rest in the Lord.
In Canon Grandel’s prayerbook, this office ends defective – the final folios have been cut out for an unknown reason, leaving us with the truncated canticle of Ezekiel (a prayer of renewal).
Missing Content
Canon Grandel’s prayerbook is mysteriously missing some essential content, and we know not why. Perhaps the miniatures were cut out to sell as individual leaves, but the prayerbook also lacks a liturgical calendar, and there are several missing folios at the end of several offices which would have presumably contained only text.
Liturgical Calendar
The liturgical calendar that usually appears at the front of a medieval book of hours is missing in Canon Grandel’s prayerbook. It is a shame, as each calendar is quite personal, listing local feast days and festivals, as well as the feast days of the owner’s favourite Saints and namesakes.
Miniatures
The only illumination in this manuscript is the beautiful champ initials, pen-flourished initials, and additional stylistic flourishes (like in the Litany of the Saints). There is evidence that 4-6 miniatures were cut out at some point after the prayerbook was rebound (though not by the bookseller).
Missing Folios
In addition to the missing miniatures and the truncated Canticle of Ezekiel, there is evidence of additional missing folios – fols. 6, 81, and 135 end abruptly, sometimes in the middle of a sentence. It is unclear why the folios were removed, as there is no evidence of extensive damage to the manuscript.
Explore Canon Grandel’s Prayerbook
Discover the intricacies of this unique book of hours, from its codicology, to its history, provenance, and the Holy Hours themselves.
Prayerbook Overview
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Codicological Analysis
Dive into the archaeology of the prayerbook.
History & Provenance
Explore the prayerbook’s history and religious context.