The Beauchamp Pageant

A fine new copy. A late fifteenth century illustrated life of Richard Beauchamp. Fully illustrated it is an essential tool for art historians and students of medieval history. 179 pp A superb reproduction of this glorious manuscript. This book is a facsimile of a beautiful medieval manuscript, The Beauchamp Pageant, which tells the story of the life of Richard, Earl of Warwick (1382-1439). It is not one of those gaudy brightly-coloured manuscripts, but one composed of delicate line drawings, now appearing in a sepia tint. This is the only modern facsimile of the manuscript and the only one to print the pages in full colour throughout, using the high-quality transparencies provided for the purpose by the British Library. The pages are printed life-size, hence the large format of the book, and each illustration is remarkable for its vibrant details, showing costume, military technology, ships and buildings and life scenes. Each page is given a parallel commentary explaining the details shown, and the whole book is rounded with a scholarly introduction, bibliography and index. It is simply beautiful, and has been printed for the publishers by the Italian fine art printers, Grafiche Milani. The original manuscript is believed to have been commissioned by Anne Beauchamp, mother-in-law of King Richard III, to celebrate the illustrious ancestry of her daughter, Anne, Richard's queen, and her grandson, Edward, Prince of Wales. Regretably, Prince Edward died young and the book was never finished. That is, it was never coloured in, but it is debatable whether the addition of paint would have masked many of the fine details, or whether colour was really intended from the outset. The manuscript was certainly finished in terms of its content: the final full-page picture is of the burial of the Earl and the remaining pages are genealogies. A sumptuous work, essential for all medievalists and especially Ricardians.…