Crucifixion from the Coëtivy Hours

Dunois Master, attributed to

Folio with three-quarter page miniature from a book of hours attributed to the Dunois Master, written in Latin and French in a bastarda script, made in Paris and dated 1443–1445. It was commissioned by Prigent de Coëtivy (1399?–1450) on the occasion of his marriage to Marie de Rais (1429–1457). The folio was removed from the bound volume between 1933 and 1960. Beneath rubrics in red, the third article of faith in French opens with an initial ‘O’ (O vet plons du) painted with white, red, blue and gold ivy-leaf ornament. The miniature is painted in demi-grisaille with pigments and gold and depicts the Crucifixion. It is the moment when the lance-bearer, Longinus, pierces Christ’s side. The crowded scene also includes the sponge-bearer, the two thieves, a group of Roman soldiers and the man who recognises Christ, and a group of Jesus’ friends and family identified by their halos. These figures include the swooning Mary, in a state of near collapse, supported by St John and three female followers. The Road to Calvary is painting in the lower margin, with a mirror on the right, the text of which is no longer visible. On the verso, the text around the mirror is still legible and reads: dame sans per (lady without equal). The scene in the lower margin is replaced by a figure emerging from a flower scolding a bowing eagle.