ART 306: ROMANESQUE and GOTHIC ART
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CD-ROM Exercise:
“The Hours of Jeanne d’Evreux: A Prayer Book for a Queen,”
(Metropolitan Museum of Art CD-ROM, 1999).
Directions: Answer the following questions based on the information provided in the CD-ROM “tour”
of the Hours of Jeanne d’Evreux, an illuminated manuscript in the collection of the Cloisters, a branch
of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. These questions are based on the major divisions of the CD-ROM
as listed in the “Menu.”
I. Jeanne d’Evreux, Queen of France
1) What were the dates of Jeanne d’Evreux’s reign as queen of France? Who was king?
2) Where in the manuscript is she depicted? What is shown doing and what is she holding?
3) Where was Jeanne crowned as queen?
4) Jeanne was a great benefactor of the arts. In 1339, what did she give the Abbey of St. Denis? What
did it contain? Also, in her will, what other gifts did she leave the Abbey?
5) The Hours of Jeanne d’Evreux was a gift to the queen from whom?
II. What is a Book of Hours?
1) What is a Book of Hours?
2) Readings are arranged in sections based on regular intervals of the day. What are those eight
intervals or “hours”?
3) What are the major parts of a Book of Hours?
4) What additional section does Jeanne’s Book of Hours include?
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III. The Calendar
1) What is included in the calendar?
2) What is the significance of the different colored inks used?
3) What is found in the bas-de-page for each month?
4) In the image used to decorate the page for February, a man is shown warming himself before a fire.
What is hanging from the chandelier?
5) What are some of the other images and information included on the pages for March, May, July,
September, and November?
IV. The Hours of the Virgin
1) What is the arrangement of images for each section of prayers? What kinds of scenes are
represented?
2) List the scenes that are depicted at the beginning of each section. (Make sure you understand the
details of the images and how they reflect the Gospel texts.)
Matins:
Lauds:
Prime:
Terce:
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Sext:
None:
Vespers:
Compline:
V. The Hours of St. Louis
1) Who was St. Louis? How is he related to Jeanne?
2) What exactly is represented in this part of the manuscript?
3) List some of the scenes that are depicted at the beginning of each section:
VI. The Penitential Psalms
1) What are the Penitential Psalms?
2) What image is a preface for this part of the manuscript?
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VII. Jean Pucelle and His Work
1) What are “marginalia”?
2) Describe the original book cover for the Hours of Jeanne d=Evreux:
VIII. A Cloisters Manuscript
(Review this section to learn about the Cloisters and its history.)
IX. Catalogue
The “catalogue” section reviews the images presented in the above sections and provides additional
information.
1) What is included in the margins of the Annunciation page? How is it related to the biblical scenes
above?
2) What animal is included near the scene of the Visitation? What is its meaning in connection to the
scene?
3) In terms of the scene of the Adoration of the Magi, what are the gifts given to the Christ Child and
what is their symbolic significance?
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