The Macclesfield Psalter
Produced in England, East Anglia, ca. 1330
Cambridge, England, The Fitzwilliam Museum, MS 1–2005
This sumptuously illuminated tiny Psalter (a little smaller than this facsimile) is a recent important discovery, overlooked for centuries in the Library of the Earl of Macclesfield, which came up for auction in 2004. It is an outstanding example of East Anglian painting, known for inventiveness and wit.
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Open to fols. 139v–140r at Psalm 97, in the initial C (Cantate Domino canticum novum; Sing unto the Lord a new canticle) we see The Annunciation to the Shepherds; below on this page stand a courting couple, and on the opposite page Saint Dunstan pinches the devil’s nose; a previous reader has scratched out the devil’s face.
Detail of fol. 139v, depicting the initial C that begins Psalm 97, including the Annunciation to the Shepherds.
Detail of fol. 140r, depicting St. Dunstan catching the devil by the nose with a pair of blacksmith's tongs.
Detail of fol. 151r, depicting a rabbit jousting with a dog.
Detail of fol. 115v, depicting a rabbit riding on a dog.
Detail of fol. 68r, depicting a giant stingray.
Detail of fol. 235v, depicting Death striking down a young man.
Facsimile: Stella Panayotova, The Macclesfield Psalter: “A Window into the World of Late Medieval England” (Cambridge: Fitzwilliam Museum, 2005)
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