Once in a Lifetime: Admiring the Anjou Bible at Leuven

This is a Going East (3): East of Brussels, at Leuven, is where on 16 September 2010 the exhibition Bijbel van Anjou, Napels 1340: Een koninklijk handschrift ontsluierd (Anjou Bible, Naples 1340: a royal manuscript unveiled) opens at Museum M, city of Leuven's recently overhauled municipal museum.

Some readers may know that one of the, if not the, savviest manager-slash-art historian resides in Leuven, more precisely at Illuminare, Study Centre of Medieval Art. Indeed, Jan van der Stock is the only person here to have ever pulled off a Named Chair in Arts & Humanities: the Rogier van der Weydenleerstoel - Paul & Dora Janssen. And one of few who does not mince words when it comes to defending this country's rich and precious heritage against ignorance.

If anything has to with Netherlandic Art, manuscripts and bindings in this city, or with princesses such as Mathilde and Maxima opening exhibitions, we can bet our head on it that Jan van der Stock is behind its marketing machinery.

Even if in the case of this precious manuscript, Illuminare does a home run - after years of careful restorating work, the Anjou Bible is ready to go back to its Leuven vault, but not before allowing the public to catch a glimpse and to gather more about how a Naples manuscript -Medieval manuscripts are wont to travel, as history always teaches- ended up here.

This restauration work is the credit of this exhibition's curator: Lieve Watteeuw, whose line of work merits a chair on its own. Lieve in recent years became a PhD with a thesis entitled De handdruk van Chronos - Zorgen voor het Middeleeuwse manuscript 1731-1937 (The handshake of Chronos: Care for the Medieval Manuscript 1731-1937), about restoration theory and practice pertaining to the Burgundy library - yet awaiting translation and publication in English.

We hope that princesses may hereby return many times to admire Low Countries' artefacts with their broods - incognito.

Venue:
Museum M.
L.Vanderkelenstraat 28
3000 Leuven
www.mleuven.be

The Anjou Bible runs until 5 December 2010.
Tue-Sunday 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Talk on manuscript illumination at Public Library Bruges (18 September 2008)

In libraries in the Dutch-speaking part of this country, the term stadsbibliotheek (City Library) is falling in desuetude. At Antwerp, Stadsbibliotheek Antwerpen (SBA) has become Erfgoedbibliotheek Hendrik Conscience. We also should stop saying Stadsbibliotheek Brugge to Openbare Bibliotheek Brugge (Public Library).

In Bruges, the main building in the public library system is also called Hoofdbibliotheek 'Biekorf' (beehive). Now its Friends, Vrienden van de Biekorfbibliotheek vzw, are the organizers, about twice a year, for public events related to its older holdings.

The Biekorf now welcomes the public for a talk by Dutch illumination specialist Saskia van Bergen, in Dutch, entitled Een Brugs handschriftenatelier in de late middeleeuwen, which is based on the results of her doctoral research.

Van Bergen completed a PhD at the University of Amsterdam in 2007 with a thesis called
De Meesters van Otto van Moerdrecht. Een onderzoek naar de stijl en iconografie van een groep miniaturisten, in relatie tot de productie van getijdenboeken in Brugge rond 1430.

The Biekorf holds manuscripts, including books of hours by Bruges facture, but none, so far as we know, by the so-called Masters of Otto van Moerdrecht.

Van Bergen will no doubt explain who Otto van Moerdrecht was, but via this case study of a workshop around 1430 also show how vast an illumination and manuscript industry, solely working for export, was at Bruges.

Details: Hoofdbibliotheek Biekorf (Reading Room), Kuipersstraat 3, 8000 Brugge, 18 September 2008, 8.pm. Entrance fee: 3 € (free entry for Friends of the Biekorf).

Photo: Christ before Pilate, illumination from Book of Hours, use of Bruges (late 16th C). Illuminations on the verso side of interfoliated leaves. Cultura Fonds Collection.