Description: As part of the SUK (Swiss Conference of Universities) Program P-2: “Scientific information: access, processing and backup,” for the past four years the Swiss Rectors’ Conference supported and aided e–codices in establishing a Swiss Centre of Competence. The overall project consisted of various subprojects, among them “Call for collaboration 2013” and “Call for collaboration 2015”, “Treasures from small collections”, “Autographs of Jean-Jacques Rousseau.“ The overall project also supported further development of the web application e-codices v2.0, which went online in December 2014.
All Libraries and Collections
Zürich, Braginsky Collection, S58
Parchment · 1 f. · 20.2 x 702 cm · India · ca. 1900
Megillat Esther (מגילת אסתר) / Esther Scroll
This Esther scroll, which combines Indian and Western traditions in a unique way, contains twenty elaborately illustrated panels flanking the text columns. The reader is shown surrounded by men wearing fezes and children holding drums used as noisemakers to drawn out the name of Haman. Additionally, a group of five women is portrayed in a separate space above labeled ezrat nashim (woman’s section). The figures in the scroll are depicted in a mixture of contemporary, Western and non-Western clothing, and often are seated in interiors that portray a similar blend of furnishings. Some of the women, including Esther at times, are shown with a Hindu bindi sign on their foreheads. This scroll comes from the collection of the eminent Sassoon family of Baghdadi Jewish descent. It was most likely created for their personal use. The merging of Jewish scribal traditions and Indian artistic design reflects the Sassoon family’s deep involvement in the cultural life of India. (red)
Parchment · 1 f. · 12 x 400 cm · Area of Lake Constance · around 1330-1345
Zürich Armorial
The Zurich armorial on parchment is one of the most important and most unusual documents of medieval heraldry. Today it consists of four parts of various lengths, which can be combined into one four-meter-long roll. Painted on both sides of the parchment, it depicts 559 coats of arms, each shield decorated with a crest, of high and lower nobility from Northern Switzerland, Southern Germany and Western Austria. Names are given next to each shield. In addition there are 28 flags of German bishoprics and monasteries. The order of these four remaining parts, which consist of thirteen parchment leaves that were sewn together, is as follows: Part I (36.5 cm) contains the coats of arms of the bishoprics and monasteries on the verso side (Merz-Hegi numbering: I-XXVIII; the numbering in the original is from the 16th/17th century) and 22 noble coats of arms on the recto side (1-22). Parts 2 and 3 (255.5 cm) were still sewn together in 1930. Part 2, consisting of four parchment leaves, contains the coats of arms 23-104 and 108-114 on the recto side and the coats of arms 214-220, 224-308 on the verso side. Part 3, consisting of three parchment leaves sewn together, contains the coats of arms 105-107, 115-162 on the recto side and the coats of arms 163-213, 221-223 on the verso side. Part 4 (109 cm), consisting of five parchment leaves sewn together, contains the coats of arms 309-378 on the recto side and the coats of arms 379-450 on the verso side. The armorial is incomplete. The missing fourth part should have contained another 109 coats of arms, which are known from a late 18th century copy of the roll. The armorial was probably created in Zurich or in the area of Lake Constance. It can be dated to the period between 1330 and 1345. The style of the workmanship is reminiscent of the famous Codex Manesse, a collection of poems in German with 137 miniatures, also created in Zurich, but somewhat older. The Zurich armorial was owned by Zürich historian and naturalist Johann Jakob Scheuchzer (1672–1733); later it became part of the collection of the Antiquarian Society of Zurich and then of the Swiss National Museum. (ber)
Parchment · 228 ff. · 11 x 9 cm · Southern Germany (Augsburg?) · second half of the 15th century (1460/90)
Book of Hours
Small book of hours in Latin, very much cut, containing the Seven Psalms, the Cursus beate virginis Marie, the Office of the Dead, the Cursus de passione Domini and various prayers. The decoration consists of various initials with wine scroll ornamentation and one full page miniature (5v) - unfortunately partially damaged - which depicts an Ecce homo with the donor kneeling in front of it with his coat of arms to his right. Mention of the indulgence of Popes Gregory and Callixtus III (1455-1458) (f. 139) makes it possible to narrow the date to the second half of the 15th century, while the style of the book decoration suggests an origin in Southern Germany, perhaps in Augsburg, in the circle of the book illustrator Johannes Bämler. (ber)
Parchment · 74 ff. · 18.8 x 12.5 cm · Constance · 1487
Processional of Münsterlingen (TG)
This Rituale originated in the Monastery of Münsterlingen (Canton of Thurgovia); it contains a collection of sermons and chants sung by the nuns for processions in the monastery, followed by a long requiem (54v-72v). The latter is introduced by a miniature depicting St. Michael weighing the souls of the dead. The rubrics are written partly in German and partly in Latin. The style of the three initials in the text is associated with the area of Lake Constance. During a restoration around 1973, two sheets of parchment, which originally were glued to the inside cover of the binding, were removed; they come from an lectionary in pre-caroline minuscule, that can be dated to the beginning of the 9th century (Mohlberg: 11th. century). (ber)
Parchment · I + 373 + II ff. · 21.2-21.5 x 15-15.5 cm · 1493
Breviary of Jost von Silenen, pars hiemalis
Breviary in two volumes, created in 1493 for Jost von Silenen († 1498), the Bischop of Sion from 1482 until his dismissal in 1497. Richly decorated, the miniatures are the work of an itinerant artist active in Fribourg, Bern and Sion during the final decades of the 15th century and known by the name Master of the breviary of Jost von Silenen. At the beginning of the 16th century, he continued his work in Aosta and Ivrea, where he took the name Master of George of Challant. (ber)
Parchment · I + 438 + II ff. · 21.6-22 x 15-15.3 cm · 1493
Breviary of Jost von Silenen, pars aestivalis
Breviary in two volumes, created in 1493 for Jost von Silenen († 1498), the Bischop of Sion from 1482 until his dismissal in 1497. Richly decorated, the miniatures are the work of an itinerant artist active in Fribourg, Bern and Sion during the final decades of the 15th century and known by the name Master of the breviary of Jost von Silenen. At the beginning of the 16th century, he continued his work in Aosta and Ivrea, where he took the name Master of George of Challant. (ber)
Leaf from a calendar — the months January and February — from a liturgical manuscript (Psalter? breviary?). The calendar was inserted into a cornice resembling arcades. For the month of January, the figure of St. Peter with his keys is depicted at right, while a medallion at the top shows an activity typical for this month: a man warming himself by a fire. For February, there is St. Matthias and in the medallion at the top a man trimming a tree in order to obtain wood. Signs of a central fold reveal that the leaf had been used as a cover, probably for a book. (ber)
Portraits of the Habsburg family and of knights killed in the Battle of Sempach (1386)
The first part (1-XX) of this illuminated manuscript on paper contains images of members of the House of Habsburg, kneeling in pious posture, represented with their respective coats of arms. These images reproduce those of the stained glass windows (1325-1340), now partially lost, of the church of Königsfelden Monastery (AG), donated in honor of Albert I of Habsburg (murdered in 1308) by his widow Elizabeth. The prototype of this dynastic cycle of pictures is the Ehrenspiegel des Hauses Österreich, which was commissioned between 1555 and 1559 by Johann Jakob Fugger in Augsburg. Several other copies thereof exist in Vienna (ÖNB, Cod. 8614), Munich (BSB, Cgm 895 and Cod. icon. 330) and Lucerne (ZHB Ms. 124 fol.). The second part (XXI-203) contains portraits of knights in armor with their respective coats of arms, who, along with Leopold III, died in the Battle of Sempach (1386). (ber)
This parchment contains a rare example of a letter of protection. The numerous folds indicate that the sheet was folded into a very small format in order to be easily carried. The letter promises protection against enemies, assistance from friends and gratification of desires. Red crosses and initials structure the Latin and German text, which contains a mixture of Christian and magical content made up of complete sentences and single letters. This letter of protection was probably written for a certain Greta, named in line 54 of the text. This paper, archived as an “amulet” was found among the documents of the noble family Wellenberg in 1701. (ber)
Parchment and paper · 2 ff. · 26.8 x 18.3 cm · Venice · about 1491
Commission of Cristoforo Duodo, procurator of San Marco de ultra
Fragment of an official document from the Republic of Venice; it contains an illuminated page and a part of the index of the “commissione” of Cristoforo Duodo, procurator of San Marco de ultra from 1491 until 1496. After the doge, the procurators held the highest office in the Serenissima; upon their election, they had capitularies drawn up, usually illuminated, containing their oath and the list of their “commissione,” i.e., of the specific tasks to which they committed themselves by their oath. This fragment follows 21 commissions of Venetian procurators from the 15th century; it is distinguished from the others by its illumination, which is attributed to a high-level Venetian master trained in the circle of Leonardo Bellini, and also by the rare depiction of the patron saint of not only the procurator, but also his wife. (poz)
Parchment · 1 f. · 17.5 x 11.5 cm · France · second half of the 15th century
Fragment from a Book of Hours
One of six parchment leaves from a book of hours, written in bastarda and datable to the second half of the 15th century. It contains illuminated initials, executed in gold on a background alternating between blue and pink; ornamental vine scrolls, sketched in pen and decorated with trifoliate leaves, extend from the initials to the margin. One of the fragments (no. 5) contains a part of the Litany of the Saints. (ber)
Parchment · 1 f. · 17.5 x 11.9 cm · France · second half of the 15th century
Fragment from a Book of Hours
One of six parchment leaves from a book of hours, written in bastarda and datable to the second half of the 15th century. It contains illuminated initials, executed in gold on a background alternating between blue and pink; ornamental vine scrolls, sketched in pen and decorated with trifoliate leaves, extend from the initials to the margin. One of the fragments (no. 5) contains a part of the Litany of the Saints. (ber)
Parchment · 1 f. · 16 x 12.2 cm · France · second half of the 15th century
Fragment from a Book of Hours
One of six parchment leaves from a book of hours, written in bastarda and datable to the second half of the 15th century. It contains illuminated initials, executed in gold on a background alternating between blue and pink; ornamental vine scrolls, sketched in pen and decorated with trifoliate leaves, extend from the initials to the margin. One of the fragments (no. 5) contains a part of the Litany of the Saints. (ber)
Parchment · 1 f. · 16.4 x 11.7 cm · France · second half of the 15th century
Fragment from a Book of Hours
One of six parchment leaves from a book of hours, written in bastarda and datable to the second half of the 15th century. It contains illuminated initials, executed in gold on a background alternating between blue and pink; ornamental vine scrolls, sketched in pen and decorated with trifoliate leaves, extend from the initials to the margin. One of the fragments (no. 5) contains a part of the Litany of the Saints. (ber)
Parchment · 1 f. · 17.5 x 12.2 cm · France · second half of the 15th century
Fragment from a Book of Hours
One of six parchment leaves from a book of hours, written in bastarda and datable to the second half of the 15th century. It contains illuminated initials, executed in gold on a background alternating between blue and pink; ornamental vine scrolls, sketched in pen and decorated with trifoliate leaves, extend from the initials to the margin. This fragment contains a part of the Litany of the Saints. (ber)
Parchment · 1 f. · 17.5 x 12.2 cm · France · second half of the 15th century
Fragment from a Book of Hours
One of six parchment leaves from a book of hours, written in bastarda and datable to the second half of the 15th century. It contains illuminated initials, executed in gold on a background alternating between blue and pink; ornamental vine scrolls, sketched in pen and decorated with trifoliate leaves, extend from the initials to the margin. One of the fragments (no. 5) contains a part of the Litany of the Saints. (ber)
Parchment · 1 f. · 11.4 x 8.4 cm · Cologne (?) · second half of the 15th century
Fragment of a calendar from a breviary (?)
Leaf from a calendar (the month of January, divided on two pages), from a small-format liturgical manuscript, probably a breviary. The calendar entry for January 11th for the feast day obitus Tercii regis. Duplex, which commemorates the Magi, suggests that the calendar was used in the diocese of Cologne. The book decoration draws on Italian illumination (from Padua and Ferrara) customary in the second half of the 15th century. (ber)
Paper · 74 ff. · 43.7 x 30.9 cm · second half of the 16th century
The Housebook of the Lords of Hallwil
The Housebook of the Lords of Hallwil, also known as Turnierbuch, is a combination of family chronicle, tournament book and book of heraldry. This paper manuscript from the second half of the 16th century probably replaces an older copy. On the inside of the cover are found the large coats of arms of Burkhart von Hallwil and his two wives Judith von Anwil and Margaretha von Löwenberg. Pp. 4-10 contain a late version of the poem Ring von Hallwil, a saga about the endangerment and saving of the inheritance of the Hallwils. On pp. 11-17 there follow texts about family history and then a second, older version of the poem Ring von Hallwil (pp. 19-21). After a number of empty pages, there are six empty crests (pp. 48-50), meant for the three brothers Thüring I von Hallwil († 1386) und Katharina von Wolfurt, Walter V († after 1370) and Herzlaude von Tengen, “Hemann” (Johannes IV, † 1386) and Anna vom Hus. On p. 51 there is a view of the ancestral home of the Hallwil family. It is followed by pictures of Caspar (p. 54) and Burkhart von Hallwil (p. 55), scenes from tournaments (pp. 56-59), and images relating to the Ring von Hallwil (pp. 60-66). At the end of the manuscript, there are more coats of arms of the Lords of Hallwil and their wives (pp. 68-96), the last ones only sketched out but not completed (pp. 97-118). The manuscript was donated to the Swiss National Museum in 1907 by Count Walther von Hallwil, the last occupant of the castle, and his wife Wilhelmine. A second version is held by the Basel University Library (Ms. H I 10). (ber)
Paper · 399 ff. · 38.2 x 27.5 cm · Hagenau · around 1431-1437
"Historienbibel" (IIa)
This richly illustrated “Historienbibel” (history Bible) from the workshop of Diebold Lauber belongs to edition IIa of the text (following Vollmer). For the Old Testament, it contains a prose version of the Weltchronik by Rudolf von Ems; for the New Testament, it contains a prose version of the Marienleben by Bruder Philipp. The cycle of illustrations, richer in comparison to sister-manuscripts, can be attributed to the illuminators of Group A, active in the Lauber workshop during the 1430s. (wal)