Canon Table Page

This German Gospel book opens with sixteen pages of canon tables, which function as an index to the Gospels, indicating by numbers where in each Gospel a particular event is described. Eusebius of Caesarea developed this concordance system in the 300s, and canon tables quickly became a common feature of medieval Gospel books and Bibles.

As was traditional in medieval manuscripts, the canon tables in this book were arranged in architectural frames. On the last four pages of the tables, large arches enclose bust-length figures of the evangelist symbols. On this page, Saint Matthew's symbol, the winged man, holds the gospel with his hands covered as a sign of reverence. Above the ornamented columns, a band announces the beginning of the tenth canon: Incipit canon X (Here begins canon ten). The artist used pattern in different ways to create a variety of effects. The sinuous shapes on the columns, for example, contrast with the angular forms that define the symbol's drapery.