Anonymous northern Italian artist
ST ANTHONY ABBOT AND DIDYMUS THE BLIND, initial 'S' from a choirbook [northern Italy, c. 1300]
An enchanting, highly accomplished, and iconographically unusual historiated initial testifying to a blend of northern Italian stylistic traditions at the dawn of the 14th century.

Rufinus of Aquileia (340/345-410) tells of how the great theologian and ecclesiastical writer Didymus the Blind (or 'the Seer', according to St Jerome) once admitted to St Anthony Abbot that the loss of his sight was a grief to him; to which the Saint replied that he wondered how a wise man could regret the loss of that which he had in common with ants and flies and gnats, and not rather rejoice that he possessed spiritual sight like that of the Saints and Apostles. The present initial must surely depict this same story: above, a blind man kneels at the feet of Christ, who bestows upon him spiritual sight; below, the same blind man is led by a young boy to see St Anthony Abbot, clad in black.

The style and decorative characteristics of the letter 'S', with its pale pinks, reds and blues and its white infills of swirling discs and crosses is reminiscent of late duecento illumination from Emilia. But the bold chiaroscuro of the strongly modelled faces and the rich, saturated palette indicate a slightly later production outside of the region – perhaps crossing over into the Veneto.

Provenance:
•The presence of Anthony Abbot would suggest that the manuscript was produced for an Antonite house in northern Italy. The order was approved by Pope Boniface VIII in 1298.

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137 x 130mm. Mounted.

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