Her Devotional: Technical Analysis of an illuminated manuscript leaf from a Delft convent

This article presents a technical study of an illuminated leaf from a fifteenth-century Book of Hours in Dutch held in the Cornell Library Rare and Manuscript Collections. We have performed synchrotron X-ray fluorescence (SR-XRF) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) mapping, as well as noninvasive point analysis with X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and fiber optic reflectance spectroscopy (FORS). We report on the diversity of pigments identified, including mineral pigments, lead-tin yellow, mosaic gold, and an unusual antimony-rich gray. These findings are compared with point XRF measurements of pigments in stylistically similar leaves in the Pitts Theology Library at Emory University, which have been attributed to the Convent of St. Ursula in Delft. Based on comparisons between imagery and penwork styles especially, we propose that the Cornell leaf may also belong to this corpus of work created at the Convent of St. Ursula, potentially expanding known examples of manuscripts created by female hands. However, while related, the palettes of the Cornell leaf and the Emory leaves are not identical, complicating our understanding of pigment use within and among medieval workshops, especially those run by women artisans.