Famous
book of hours created by the
Limburg Brothers - Paul, Hermann and Jean - for the duke
Jean de Berry.
The book was painted between
1412 and
1416 and contains prayers and
illumination depicting
mundane life in and around the duke's castle. Since the duke,
patron of the artists, died in 1416, the remaining work on the book was cancelled, later to be completed by
Jean Colombe.
The Très Riches Heures is by many considered the
apex of medieval art, equal in historical and cultural importance to
Mona Lisa, and a work of remarkable
craftmanship. Painting the fine details probably required use of lenses and raw materials of very high quality, such as ground
lapis lazuli for the blue colours.
The original is stored in the
Chantilly Museum, but is in very bad condition and is not available to the public.