At the turn of the 15th to the 16th century, manuscripts began to disappear, supplanted by the printed books, which had been gaining popularity ever since the invention of the printing press, generally attributed to Gutenberg with the printing of the first Bible in Mainz in 1454. In France, starting 1490s-1500s, printed books became increasingly common, gradually eroding the tradition of (illuminated) manuscripts, which were more time-consuming and more expensive to produce. 

The present illuminated leaf, depicting the Pentecost, is a beautiful example of a French illumination dating from the time when illuminated manuscripts were gradually being replaced by printed books. Originating from a Book of Hours, this charming illuminated leaf shows all the characteristics of Parisian illumination from the early 16th century: the brushwork is quick, the contours are marked, the palette is diluted, the colors are particularly vivid and the profusion of decoration in the four borders is notable. This richness of colors and decorative elements in manuscripts from the early 16th century is often seen as the swan song of the illuminators, certainly aware that they were witnessing the last moments of their art.

The artist responsible for this miniature is aligned with the style of the famous and prolific illuminator Étienne Colaud (active in Paris, first half of the 16th century), known thanks to his signature which appears in a Book of Hours (France, private collection). Several manuscripts, marked by Étienne Colaud's style, are work of collaborators, associates, or followers. Among these, we can mention the illuminator that expert Marie-Blanche Cousseau named "L'exécutant principal des Statuts" who illuminated several copies of the Statutes of the Order of Saint Michael produced during the reign of Francis the 1st. Our illuminator seems particularly close to this anonymous artist, but is probably another illuminator working in the same atelier. More specifically, we believe we recognize the hand of our artist in three other manuscripts, all indebted to the style developed by Étienne Colaud's workshop: a copy of the Institution du Prince (Paris, Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal, ms. 5103), a copy of Petrarch's Triumphs (Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, ms. fr. 12423) and a pontifical bearing the arms of Philippe de Lévis (Poitiers, Bibliothèque municipale, ms. 822).

We thank Marie Mazzone for her expertise.