Author: Natalie Burkardt

After looking through and reading all about the Duc De Berry’s personal book of hours done by the Limbourg brothers, the Tres Riches Heures, I am left very curious about the effect it had during the time it was created. It stands out from all other books of hours because it is secular, and Professor Serrano even called it a “radical text”. It is also unusual because of the consistent juxtaposition between the upper class people and the laborers. Because the Tres Riches Heures is so totally different from any other book of hours from its time, both in purpose and content, I wonder what people thought of it when the Duc De Berry showed it to them. I think those similar to the Duc in terms of being secular would find the Tres Riches Heures very amusing, since it is essentially making a mockery of traditional books of hours by making it all about the Duc and his possessions rather than all about Christianity. Those who were still religious, however, could find the Tres Riches Heures offensive for the same reason. Or, perhaps the Duc didn’t like to show off his book of hours and kept it to himself. But I doubt it.

I think that the Tres Riches Heures was intended to be a humorous text. What really led me to think this was all of the commentary in the illustrations between the rich and the poor. The Limbourg brother switch back and forth each month between miniatures with scenes of the rich and with scenes of the poor. In January, we see a scene of a marvelous feast with the Duc at the center surrounded by friends and food and even his dogs. It all looks very proper and as if everyone is having a blast. The next image for the month of February shows the servants gathered inside also having a good time, but they are all lifting their skirts or messing with their pants to reveal themselves. This suggests that either the Duc de Berry or the Limbourg brothers thinks that the way poor people have a good time and enjoy themselves is by doing something that the rich people would never do and would find very improper.

Not only did the Duc de Berry change the whole meaning of a book of hours by having the main subject of the Tres Riches Heures be himself rather than his religion, he also seemed to make a lot of commentary on the relationship between the rich and the poor. Because of this, I believe that the Tres Riches Heures was created to be a radical and humorous text, but maybe I’m reading too far into it. What do you guys think?

While watching The Secret of Kells, I considered the juxtaposition of making a movie about ancient times and manuscripts through modern digital animation. The painstaking process of creating an illuminated manuscript and the creation of a digitally animated movie seem not to have very much in common. Illuminated manuscripts must go through many different steps and many different people with specific skills, like scribes and illuminators, to become a finished product. The process is long and arduous. While many people must collaborate to create an animated film, the actual process of animation itself can be done quickly and easily by pretty much anyone who has access to a computer. Anyone could potentially make their own animation today, though in ancient times it was nearly impossible to make your own illuminated manuscript from start to finish.

Though these two creative processes seem very different, the animated film The Secret of Kells combines them in an interesting and artful way. The animation style is reminiscent of the illuminated miniatures in ancient manuscripts. Just as all boarders and margins in illuminated manuscripts are covered in ornately detailed drawings, so is nearly every scene of the movie. I don’t think there is a single shot where the screen is not completely filled in with unique ornamentation. The characters are two-dimensional, just as the appear on the pages of manuscripts. Similarly, all the characters move within the same plane, which eliminates spatial perspective the same way looking at images on a piece of parchment would.

I found the film The Secret of Kells a very interesting and visually beautiful combination of the old and new styles of illustration and animation.