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FRANCESCO PETRARCA, 1304-1374
Triumphi
On parchment
Florence, 1450-60
MS 438, ff. 2v - 3r
Illustrated manuscripts of the Triumphi are a
favorite with collectors all over the world. MS 438 with
its lavish miniatures and decoration is one of almost
forty copies of the Triumphi that have made their
way to the United States, but few other manuscripts have
such exceptionally fine illumination. On this page, the
Triumph of Love is introduced by a miniature
in a gold frame: Cupid stands on a burning cart pulled
by four white horses, surrounded by a crowd of unfortunate
lovers, including Cleopatra and Dido. Each of the following
Triumphi have a similar illumination. Within
the gold initial is the profile bust of an elderly man
in noble attire (probably Petrarch), with full-border
white vinestem decoration, green and pink infilling, linked
by two gold bars on a blue ground with clusters of tiny
white dots and ending with gold rayed orbs; numerous animals
(stag, goat, leopard, rabbit, fox) and multi-colored birds
inhabit the border, while putti support garlands
on the upper margin as well as the effaced arms in the
lower margin. This illuminated page is among the finest
Florentine workmanship of the 15th century.
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