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Walters Ms. W.840, Single leaf with Saint Luke

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Shelf mark

W.840


Manuscript

Single leaf with Saint Luke


Text title
Portrait of Evangelist Luke

Abstract

This single leaf originally belonged to a Gospel book, and was created in the Lake Tana region of Ethiopia. The strong abstraction of the figure and his surroundings are characteristic of Ethiopian illumination of the late fourteenth century. The image, which is on the verso of the page, depicts the Evangelist St. Luke and would likely have originally faced the opening of his Gospel. Here Luke is presented as an Ethiopian scribe and is surrounded by the tools of his trade, including ink horns, reed pens, and a scraping knife. His upward gaze suggests the divine inspiration he received while writing his Gospel, the first words of which are inscribed on the page he holds. Despite being badly abraded, the pigments still retain much of their original vibrancy.


Date

Late 14th century CE


Origin

Lake Tana, Ethiopia


Form

Leaf


Genre

Scriptural


Language:

The primary language in this manuscript is Geez.


Support material

Parchment

Heavy yellowed parchment


Extent

Foliation: Not applicable


Dimensions

25.4 cm wide by 35.0 cm high


Layout
  1. Image: 22.2 cm wide x 29 cm high

Contents:
fols. 1r - 1v:
  1. Title: Portrait of Evangelist Luke
  2. Decoration note: Full-page miniature in orange, yellow, green, black, blue, and salmon tempera, now badly abraded; decorative headpiece; orange border

Decoration:

fol. W.840v:

  1. W.840, fol. W.840v
  2. Title: Evangelist Luke writing his Gospel
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Comment:

    The inscription reads: "እስመ፡ ብዙኃን፡ እለ፡ ወጠኑ፡ ይንግሩ፡ ወይምሀሩ፡ (ǝsmä bǝzuḫan ǝllä wäṭänu yǝngǝru wä-yǝmharu)," or "Since many have undertaken and taught." (Lk 1:1)


Provenance

Originally created as part of a Gospel book, Lake Tana, Ethiopia, late fourteenth or early fifteenth century

Joseph and Margaret Knopfelmacher collection, New York, before 1996


Acquisition

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Knopfelmacher, 1996


Bibliography

Holbert, Kelly, ed. Ethiopian Art: The Walters Art Museum. Baltimore: Trustees of the Walters Art Gallery, 2001, pp. 100-101, cat. no. 12.


Contributors

Principal cataloger: Getatchew Haile, .

Cataloger: Herbert, Lynley

Editor: Herbert, Lynley

Conservators: Owen, Linda; Quandt, Abigail

Contributors: Bockrath, Diane; Emery, Doug; Isaac, Ephraim; Noel, William; Tabritha, Ariel; Toth, Michael B.


Publisher

The Walters Art Museum


License

Licensed for use under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported Access Rights, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/legalcode. It is requested that copies of any published articles based on the information in this data set be sent to the curator of manuscripts, The Walters Art Museum, 600 North Charles Street, Baltimore MD 21201.