Pierre de Rohan-Gié (1451-1513)

FACSIMILE OF THE BOOK HORAE PRINCIPII DE ROHAN

1500/reprint 21st century
Size 4°, 24.5x16 cm. 161 numbered pp., in Latin. Hardcover binding with 5 raised bands, covered in red suede, cardboard slipcase. This is a facsimile of a medieval Book of Hours (Horae), a religious text serving as a prayer guide for the individual parts of the day and year. The original was created around 1500 on commission from the Breton nobleman Pierre de Rohan-Gié. The book is an illuminated manuscript, richly decorated, and contains a calendar section with astrological signs and biblical scenes. After Pierre, it was owned by Charles de Rohan, known as Marshal Soubise (1715–1787), who inscribed notes about its origin. In the 19th century, it came to Sychrov Castle in Bohemia. After the Second World War, it was confiscated under the Beneš Decrees and passed into state ownership. Since 1951, it has been held in the National Library in Prague. Books of Hours were in their time symbols of luxury and spiritual culture of the upper classes. Ownership of such a book was common among kings, dukes, and nobility.