Blue pigments
Artists' Materials
Azurite was used in the majority of blue areas on every folio analysed, although the presence or absence of trace amounts of barium, zinc and arsenic suggest the use of different sources or batches of the same pigment. High amounts of barium impurities, in particular, characterise the images attributed to the Painter of Additional 15677. Ultramarine and smalt were identified on one folio each (fols. 15r and 14r respectively). Indigo was also detected in a minority of areas on several folios.
St Luke painting the Virgin and Tree of Jesse (Mass of the Virgin)
According to medieval tradition, the Virgin sat for a life portrait to St Luke, a gifted artist. Here, St Luke appears to have started colouring the Virgin’s image on the panel. The Tree of Jesse was a subject with a long tradition in medieval art and biblical studies. Based on Isaiah’s prophecy (Isaiah 11:1-3), it was considered an Old Testament prefiguration of the Incarnation and the virginal birth of Christ. The image also visualised the account of Christ’s genealogy found at the beginning of St Matthew’s Gospel – the very text that forms the central part of the Mass of the Virgin.
Two artists collaborated on this page. The small miniature of St Luke painting the Virgin, with the initial E accommodated within the arched frame, was probably painted by the Master of James IV of Scotland or a close associate who had access to his image models. The Tree of Jesse was completed by the Master of St Michael.