Paperblanks Spinola Hours Mini Hardback Address Book – 128 Pages

Keep the people who matter close at hand with this Spinola Hours mini hardback address book from Paperblanks, complete with alphabetised thumb-cut tabs.

Displaying astounding naturalistic illusionism, the Spinola Hours is one of the most visually sophisticated 16th-century Flemish manuscripts. It contains a calendar of Church holidays, hours, offices and masses, as well as prayers, hymns and readings, all richly illuminated as seen in the page reproduced here.

The Story Behind the Design

With pages displaying astounding plays of naturalistic illusionism, the luxurious personal prayer book known as the Spinola Hours is one of the most visually sophisticated Flemish manuscripts of the 16th century.

A book of hours contains texts including a calendar of Church holidays, the Hours of the Virgin (a cycle of prayer services devoted to the Virgin Mary), the Office for the Dead, and other prayers, hymns and readings. This particular example augments these contents with a special series of weekday offices and masses, providing even more possibilities for rich illuminations. The book was undoubtedly commissioned for a wealthy patron, perhaps Margaret of Austria, for whom the Master of James IV of Scotland, a famed manuscript illuminator and painter, produced other works. In the 1700s it belonged to the Spinola family in Genoa, from whom it takes its modern name.

We are honoured to feature this unparalleled example of illumination from the J. Paul Getty Museum as part of our collaborative collection.

• Original artwork: Illuminated manuscript page from the Spinola Hours
• Era: circa 1510–1520
• Region: Belgium

Product Details

• Size: Mini – 90 × 140 × 15 mm
• Pages: 128 (64 sheets)
• Paper: 120 gsm acid-free cream laid paper
• Cover: Hardback
• Closure: Elastic band
• Binding: Smyth sewn – lies flat and stays durable
• Corners: Rounded
• Pouch: Memento pouch
• Design: Spinola Hours
• Series: Ancient Illumination
• Collection: The J. Paul Getty Museum Collection
• Thumb cut page edges
• 100% recycled binder boards
• Decorative printed cover paper
• Printed on acid-free paper
• Threaded stitching and glue, as needed
• Memento pouch
• Weight: 151 g
• Product code: PB9813-3 | ISBN: 9781439798133

About Paperblanks

Paperblanks works with museums, libraries, galleries and artists around the world to faithfully reproduce remarkable artwork, historic bindings and treasured manuscripts. Every book is made to last, with binder boards crafted from 100% recycled materials, and the back endpaper tells the fascinating story behind the cover design and credits its creators.