The Anonymous Book of the Four Gospels
from the time of Stephen the Great and Bogdan the Third

1504 - 1507 - the manuscript, the miniatures and the binding

Written in Slavonic by an anonymous calligraphist, this Book of the Four Gospels is the last manuscript from the time of Stephen the Great. It is written on a parchment, using a half-inch writing, and it has 380 sheets, out of which the first three and last four are blank. Each regular page has 18 lines written in black ink, except the dots, a few lines and some scattered words - which are written in gold. The decorations from the sides are always marked in red ink.

The book contains the entire iconographic and decorative traditional repertoire: each Gospel is preceded by the portrait of the evangelist, thus starting his account; each title page contains a multicoloured, tall and sumptuous adornment, decorated with gracious flowery models; each title is written with yellow capital letters, and the initials of each gospel are craftily ornated with golden and polychrome beadings. There are also ten other title pages of smaller dimensions, placed on different pages, with geometrical and vegetal stylisations , as well as the border of the calligraphed votive inscription in the church porch on page number 360.

The grand title pages of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke have intertwined circles as their traditional motifs, from the combination of which result a varied range of geometrical stylisations and floral suggestions, realized in sensitive chromatic hues; while the title page of the Gospel of John lacks the traditional motifs, being done in arabesques of curved and straight lines, from the combination of which result a multicoloured background, in which a succession of St Andrew’s crosses are the predominant symbols.

As usual, the Evangelists are dressed in ancient attire, with a tunic and a pallium, their figures set against architectural backgrounds, while the entire scenes are placed inside rectangular frames decorated with vegetal motifs.


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