Leaf from a Gradual with Music, c. 1420-1450

Leaf from a Gradual with Music (verso), c. 1420-1450. Within the double curve of the S is a scene representing the Birth of the Virgin. The Virgin's mother, Saint Anne, occupies the birthing bed in the upper scene. Below, the infant Mary has been bathed and wrapped in swaddling clothes. In manuscript missals and their musical counterparts (the gradual), votive Masses are generally assigned one to each day of the week with Saturday being reserved for the Blessed Virgin. The votive Mass to the Virgin varied from season to season. Three Masses were, therefore, supplied-one for Advent, one to be used from Christmas to Purification, and a third, represented by this leaf, to be used from Purification to Advent (Salve Sancta Parens…, or Hail, Holy Mother…). The rubric and miniature indicate that the leaf was to be used for the Nativity of the Virgin, celebrated on September 8th in the liturgical calendar. The identity of the artist remains elusive, as does his precise place of origin. The figure style and ornament suggest a source in North Italy, perhaps in an artistic center such as Pavia, Mantua, or Padua.