Leaf from a Book of Hours or Psalter: Office of the Dead

The rubric at the top of this manuscript page identifies its text as belonging to the Office of the Dead, the funeral service conducted by priests. Lay readers also recited this office in the hopes of facilitating the peaceful repose of the departed and of shortening the time that they would spend in purgatory. Because the Office could appear in psalters and books of hours, it is not clear what sort of book this leaf comes from. Framing the leaf’s text, a delicate gold leaf border extends into a large initial “V” at the center of the page. An intricate pattern of multi-colored vinework surrounds this border, incorporating several interlaced animal figures in the right margin.