Bible of Jean de Vaudetar
by BONDOL, Jean, Manuscript (Ms. 10 B 23), 292 x 215 mm
This Latin manuscript, containing biblical stories, was commissioned by Jean de Vaudetar, royal advisor, as a gift to King Charles V of France (reigned 1364-1380). The full-page dedicatory picture and the 269 text illustrations were produced by Jean Bondol, court painter to King Charles V, and other anonymous illuminators.
In the dedicatory miniature at the beginning of the manuscript (folio 2r) the chamberlain Jean de Vaudetar presents a retelling of the Bible as a gift to King Charles V. The volume he holds in his hands is identical with the codex to which this picture was added. The bulky and heavily modelled King Charles V sits in a clearly indicated space marked out by a tiled floor and, overhead, a circular baldacchino.
The painterly cultivation and the simple, clear composition are typically French, while the sharpness of observation is in the Flemish tradition.