The Art of Illumination

Belles Heures of Jean de France, duc de Berry, 1405–1408/9. Herman, Paul, and Jean de Limbourg (Franco-Netherlandish, active in France by 1399–1416). French; Made in Paris. Ink, tempera, and gold leaf on vellum; 9 3/8 x 6 5/8 in. (23.8 x 16.8 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, The Cloisters Collection, 1954 (54.1.1).

Suffrages of the Saints
Saint Vincent Cast to the Beasts, Folio 163r

Vincent was tortured for his Christian faith but refused to recant, and finally died. Out of spite, the governor who had persecuted him ordered his body to be exposed to beasts in the wilderness. Although lions and wolves are shown circling the naked corpse, a large crow descends on divine light to keep the animals at bay. Saint Vincent’s relics were venerated at Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris, near the residence of Duke Jean de Berry.