Adjoining Leaves from a Book of Hours: Penitential Psalms and King David in Prayer (2 of 3 Excised Leaves)

The 1520s Hours Workshop produced "jewel-like" luxury books of hours for a wealthy and royal clientele. Until recently the workshop was believed to be in Tours on the Loire. However, recent evidence points to Paris as the site of the workshop’s activity under the direction of Antwerp-born miniaturist Noël Bellemare. The palette is characterized by fuchsia pinks and bright acid greens—both unusual in French manuscript painting of the period. The miniatures are either framed with illusionistic borders in the Flemish style or enclosed within "Fontainebleau"-style architectural frames.