The Faithful Fine Art Facsimile Edition of the Corpus Apocalypse

Quaternio Editions Lucerne is publishing a faithful facsimile edition of the most richly ornamented Apocalypse of the fourteenth century, MS 20 from Corpus Christi College in Cambridge; the facsimile edition is limited worldwide to 680 hand-numbered copies.

Absolutely faithful reproductions of the 121 large-format miniatures form a series of illustrations that evenly decorate the 144 pages measuring approximately 37 × 26 cm; also included are 280 blue initials with red flourishing, and 59 gold initials. In combination with an intense minium red, numerous sections of silver, which still retain their glow, and brilliant gold surfaces, most of them ornamented with delicate chasing, create a luminous vision out of the Revelation of St John from the Corpus Christi College.

Just like the original, the facsimile is bound in a light-coloured, leather binding. Apocalypse and commentary volume come in a protective case made of acrylic glass for better presentation.

The Commentary Volume is the Key to the Work

The accompanying commentary volume has been entrusted to four internationally renowned specialists in manuscript illumination and the Apocalypse theme: Nigel J. Morgan, Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, provides an introduction to the tradition of fourteenth-century English Apocalypses and describes the images of the Visions of St Paul of the punishments in Hell.

Peter K. Klein, of Eberhard Karls University, Tübingen, discusses the iconography of the manuscript and describes all of the miniatures in the Apocalypse of St John.

Christopher de Hamel, Donnelley Fellow Librarian at the Parker Library, sheds some light on the codicology and provenance of the manuscript, and devotes attention to the Coronation Order.

Daron Burrows, of the University of Manchester, transcribes and translates the Anglo-Norman French texts into English.

Commentary available both in English and in German.

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