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).

Penitential Psalms
David Flees from Absalom (Psalm 142), Folio 72r

The title of the psalm, rather than the text, provides the subject for this illumination, and refers to episodes from the Books of Kings. Absalom is shown pursuing his father, King David, who beseeches God even as he rides off. With remarkable compression, the two horses and riders and their curving path all fit into this small painting.