Sin and Redemption in the Hours of François I (1539–40) by the Master of François de Rohan

In 2011, the department of European Sculpture and decorative Arts acquired a lavish book of hours made for the use of Rome for King François I (1494 – 1547). Of the manuscript’s ninety-three leaves, eighteen feature full-page miniatures by the Master of François de Rohan, who was active mainly in Paris between about 1525 and 1546. The humanistic script (an imitation of Roman script) is likely the work of Jean Mallard, a calligrapher and illuminator from Rouen who enjoyed royal patronage first in France, then in England.1 In light of the fact that virtually nothing remains of François I’s collection of personal prayer books, the Hours of François I constitutes a key addition to the Museum’s collection of works from the French Renaissance.2 The manuscript itself is remarkable for its sumptuous decoration and the unusual imagery of two illuminations, folios 67r and 89r (Figures 1, 2), which together raise important questions about François I’s attitude toward kingship and the struggles he faced in the tumultuous period during which the book was made.