16 Comments

Thank you for this excellent article, Amelia. Pairing these magnificent images with the O Antiphons was a wonderful idea.

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The thematic overlap is pretty amazing.

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Thank you. This is a perfect meditation for the final week of Advent. What a beautiful missal!

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I appreciate the encouragement Melanie! It is probably my favorite illuminated manuscript.

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This is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.

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Such beautiful inspiration, my Advent is all the richer for read this wonderful piece. Thank you for all the work you put into this and all your other pieces, your efforts are noticed and appreciated greatly. Merry Christmas everyone 🎄🙏❤️

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Thank you for the encouraging note Lauren! I appreciate it. Merry Christmas!

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This article has been a blessing to have in these last days of Advent. Thank you and Merry Christmas!

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Thank you Don! Merry Christmas!

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Thanks for another great post! Can you tell me who would have seen this missal? Would the eyes of commoners have ever rested on its beauty? Or was it seen only by the monks?

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Thank you Emily!

This missal was only used for special occasions, part of why it is in such good condition.

Hildesheim was a popular pilgrimage church and an artistic center so the church itself was very beautiful and some of the most important artistic treasures of the period were there. Pilgrims may have glimpsed at it on the altar, but I don’t think it would have been widely seen.

https://www.liturgicalartsjournal.com/2021/09/the-tree-of-jesse-ceiling-of.html?m=1

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Glory to God!

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Thank you for this post! I have known the Stammheim Missal in various contexts since graduate school, including seeing it in person just this past autumn in the Getty exhibit on light, but somehow I never realized that the illuminations were for the O Antiphons! Thank you so much for showing this!

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It is incredible! I would have loved to see that exhibit at the Getty. They really are so generous with what they make available online…

I should have clarified better. The illuminations were not made for the O Antiphons. They were mostly made for feast days and such… I just paired the miniatures with relevant Antiphons.

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You've convinced me that the pairing works!

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Thank you Amelia. Since you are thematically oriented, maybe you can showcase the amazing treasury of Christ reigning in glory and judgment. The first instance I found is in St. David's in Thesselonica.

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