Description
Book SynopsisThe Velislav Bible is one of the most beautiful medieval Bohemian manuscripts. It is a heavily illustrated manuscript that contains only short selections of the text, that instruct the reader about the story depicted. The last picture in the manuscript shows a man kneeling before St. Catherine, identified as Velislav, hence the name of the manuscript. The Bible comprises stories from the Books of Genesis and Exodus, visions of Daniel, and the stories of Samson as well as of Judith. The narrative of the Antichrist precedes the Christological part. The New Testament continues with the Book of Revelation, stories following the Ascension of Christ, and key events from the lives of St. Peter and St. Paul. The manuscript closes with the legend of St. Wenceslas, the patron saint of Bohemia. The essays in
The Velislav Bible, Finest Picture-Bible of the Late Middle Ages: Biblia depicta as Devotional, Mnemonic and Study Tool analyze the manuscript from historical, textual, art-historical, and iconographic perspectives. However, a shared concern of all the authors is to think about its functions. An edition of the Latin
titulis is being published here for the first time.
Trade Review"For those who have long been fascinated by the remarkable mid-fourteenth-century picture book known as the Velislav Bible, the volume edited by Lenka Panu.ková has been eagerly awaited; for medievalists not acquainted with this fascinating manuscript, this volume will serve as a welcome introduction. [...] I’m delighted to have this book and recommend it to all interested in medieval manuscript illustration, apocalyptic and biblical studies, and didactic and homiletic practices."
- Richard K. Emmerson,
The Medieval Review, 21.02.08 (2021)
"The contributors to this volume bring to light, once again, the famous Czech/Bohemian picture Bible, the
Velislav Bible, created sometime in the first half of the fourteenth century. Older research had already recognized the great value of this Bible, and the authors of the collected articles stand on their shoulders and try to offer new perspectives... This is a well edited volume, and much credit goes both to the editor and the contributors, as well as to the publishing house."
- Albrecht Classen,
Mediaevistik 32, 2019
"Overall, the publication offers a very good introduction into the complexities of the Velislav Bible [...] it will surely become the standard work on this Czech manuscript."
- Zsombor Jékely,
Speculum Vol. 97, No. 2 (April 2022)
Table of ContentsI. Studying the Velislav Bible: An Overview (Anna Kernbach and Lenka Panusková) II. Text and Image in the Velislav Bible: To the Interpretation of an Illuminated Codex (Anna Kernbach and Lenka Panusková) III. The Velislav Bible in the Context of the Late Medieval Biblical Narratives and Mnemotechnics (Lucie Dole¸alová) IV. The Books of Genesis and Exodus in the Picture Bibles: Looking for an Audience (Lenka Panusková) V. Life of Antichrist in the Velislav Bible (Pavlína Cermanová) VI. Ostensio thesaurum Antichristi: Iconography of the Pictorial Narrative Vita Antichristi in the Velislav Bible (Katerina Hornícková) VII. Ibi predicit hominibus: Searching for the Practical Function of the Velislav Bible (Milena Bartlová) VIII. Edition of the Tituli (Anna Kernbach) Primary Sources Bibliography List of Manuscripts List of Illustrations General Index
