The Digital Walters is a branch of The Walters Art Museum Manuscripts Department.
The Digital Walters is a branch of The Walters Art Museum Manuscripts Department.
This manuscript was made in 1262 by T’oros Roslin, the celebrated illuminator who extended the iconographic repertoire by defining a narrative Gospel cycle beyond the traditional portraits of the Evangelists. This signed manuscript was created at the scriptorium of Hromkla, which became the leading artistic center of Armenian Cilicia under the rule of Catholicos Constantine I (1221-1267). As an extensive colophon starting on fol. 406v explains, T’oros created this manuscript under commission from the nephew of Constantine, a priest also named T’oros. It is one of seven known manuscripts bearing T’oros Roslin’s signature, and it is the most sumptuous of them all, with 15 miniatures and 67 smaller illustrations. The style of the images suggests that T’oros had several assistants helping with the illustrations, though the overall quality remains extremely high. The manuscript was long cherished within the Armenian church. Even in the seventeenth century, its illumination served as a model for Armenian scribes, particularly Bargham and his son Mik’ayel; see Jerusalem, Armenian Patriarchate, no. 3438 and Washington DC, Freer Gallery, Ms. 36.15; in the latter manuscript, Mik’ayel explicitly refers to “the excellent scribe T’oros, surnamed Roslin.”
artist: Tʻoros Ṛoslin
Principal cataloger: Der Nersessian, Sirarpie
Principal cataloger: Landau, Amy
Principal cataloger: van Lint, Theo M
Cataloger: Herbert, Lynley
Cataloger: Noel, William
Copy editor: Dibble, Charles
Contributor: Bockrath, Diane
Contributor: Emery, Doug
Contributor: Pizzinato, Riccardo
Contributor: Tabritha, Ariel
Contributor: Toth, Michael B.
Conservator: Owen, Linda
Conservator: Quandt, Abigail
Diringer, David. The Illuminated Book: Its History and Production. London: Faber & Faber, 1958.
"Bulletin Codicologique." Scriptorium 26 (1972): pp. 130-246, p. 160 n. 154, p. 208 n. 402.
Randall, Lilian M. C. "Illuminated Manuscripts: Masterpieces in Miniature." The Walters Art Gallery Bulletin 37, no. 6 (1984): pp. 1-2.
Thanks are expressed to Professor Bernard Coulie (Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve) for kindly making available his bibliography on the Armenian manuscripts kept in the Walters Art Museum.
Mathews, Thomas F. Armenian Gospel Iconography: The Tradition of the Glajor Gospel. Washington, D.C. : Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, 1991, figs. 35a, 92b, 453a, 480b.
Miner, Dorothy. "Since De Ricci--Western Illuminated Manuscripts Acquired since 1934." Journal of the Walters Art Gallery 31-32 (1966): pp. 68-103.
Mathews, Thomas F. "L'Arménie en Amérique." Connaissance des Arts 506 (1994): pp. 90-97, p. 95, fig. 5.
Burin, Elizabeth. "Armenian Manuscript Illumination: Art from Christianity's Eastern Frontier." The Walters Art Gallery Bulletin 47, no. 6 (1994): pp. 4-5.
Mathews, Thomas F. and Roger S. Wieck, eds. Treasures in Heaven: Armenian Illuminated Manuscripts. New York: Pierpont Morgan Library, 1994, pp. 149-50, figs. 47, 48, pls. 12-14.
Der Nersessian, Sirarpie, and Sylvia Agemian. Miniature Painting in the Armenian Kingdom of Cicilia from the Twelfth to the Fourteenth Century. Dumbarton Oaks Studies 31. Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection. 1993.
Mahoney, Lisa. "T'oros Roslin and the Representation of Pagan Threat." Journal of the Walters Art Museum 68-69 (2010-2011): pp. 67-76, pp. 68-69, fig. 1 (fols. 203v, 204r), p. 71, figs. 3 (fol. 191r), 4 (fol. 38r), 5 (fol. 40r), 6 (fol. 66r), p. 72, fig. 7 (fol. 48r), p. 73 (fol. 19r).
"Comptes Rendus." Scriptorium 33 (1979): p. 327.
Der Nersessian, Sirarpie. Armenian Manuscripts in the Walters Art Gallery. Baltimore: Walters Art Gallery, 1973, pp. 10-30, no. 3.
Nersessian, Vrej. Treasures from the Ark: 1700 Years of Armenian Christian Art. London: British Library, 2001, p. 225, fig. 159.
Sanjian, Avedis K. A Catalogue of Medieval Armenian Manuscripts in the United States. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1976, pp. 273-287.
Der Nersessian, Sirarpie. Armenian Art. Trans. Sheila Bourne and Angela Olsen. London: Thames & Hudson, 1978, pp. 132-135, figs. 95-97.
Walters Art Gallery. Handbook of the Collection. Baltimore: Walters Art Gallery, 1936, p. 95.
Miner, Dorothy, ed. Early Christian and Byzantine Art: An Exhibition Held at the Baltimore Museum of Art, April 25-June 22 [1947]. Baltimore: Trustees of the Walters Art Gallery, 1947, p. 148, no. 750, pl. CVII.
Nersessian, Sirarpie Der. Armenia and the Byzantine Empire: A Brief Study of Armenian Art and Civilization. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1945, pp. 126-27, pl. 28.
Carr, Annemarie Weyl. Cyprus and the Devotional Arts of Byzantium in the Era of the Crusades. Burlington: Ashgate/Variorum, 2005.
These are pages that we pulled aside that disrupted the flow of the manuscript reader. These may be bindings, inserts, bookmarks, and various other oddities.
Hromkla, Armenia
Copied and illuminated in 1262 CE
book
Non-original Binding
Brown stamped leather with flap and three straps. The latter are modern replacements attached to the lower cover by old engraved silver sheaths, which swivel on rosettes, and loop over ornamental silver pegs on the upper cover. At the center of the upper cover is nailed a large jeweled silver-gilt plaque shaped as a cross. This is flanked by four small gilt-metal crucifixes cast in relief, and four corner pieces with representations in relief of the symbols of the Evangelists. Inscription on the upper crucifix on the left: "This holy cross is a memorial for the soul of Mkrtitchm in the year 1092" (1643 CE); on the right: "This holy cross is a memorial for the soul of Hovannes, 1092" (1643 CE). Inscription on the triangular base of the large cross: "This is the work of the deacon Mik'ayel. Whoever remembers [me], may he be blessed by God. Father, I have sinned." Framing the upper cover is a silver band, 3 cm wide, engraved with floral and geometric designs and nielloed.
The primary language in this manuscript is Armenian.
Copied and illuminated by T'oros Roslin, 1262, at the patriarchal see of Hromkla for the priest T'oros, nephew of the catholicos Constantine I
The priest T'oros presented it to the hermitage of Ark'akaghin in Cilicia, 1262, through the intermediary of Bishop Sion
Patuakan, a native of Sebastia, took it back from "infidels" who had taken it, and presented it to Ter Tiratur in 1604
Church of the Holy Virgin, Sebastia, as of 1626, and rebound there by the deacon Melk'iset in 1643
Church of the Holy Cross, Sebastia, by 1881, known from notices dated 1881, 1886, and 1904, stamped with the seal of Petros, Bishop of Sebastia, and stating it had been moved to that church
Acquired by Henry Walters in Paris, 1929, and remained in his possession at his New York residence until his death; therefore not included in the 1931 bequest to the Walters Art Gallery
March 1935, given to The Walters Art Gallery by Mrs. Henry Walters
Hromkla, Armenia
Copied and illuminated in 1262 CE
book
The primary language in this manuscript is Armenian.
Copied and illuminated by T'oros Roslin, 1262, at the patriarchal see of Hromkla for the priest T'oros, nephew of the catholicos Constantine I
The priest T'oros presented it to the hermitage of Ark'akaghin in Cilicia, 1262, through the intermediary of Bishop Sion
Patuakan, a native of Sebastia, took it back from "infidels" who had taken it, and presented it to Ter Tiratur in 1604
Church of the Holy Virgin, Sebastia, as of 1626, and rebound there by the deacon Melk'iset in 1643
Church of the Holy Cross, Sebastia, by 1881, known from notices dated 1881, 1886, and 1904, stamped with the seal of Petros, Bishop of Sebastia, and stating it had been moved to that church
Acquired by Henry Walters in Paris, 1929, and remained in his possession at his New York residence until his death; therefore not included in the 1931 bequest to the Walters Art Gallery
March 1935, given to The Walters Art Gallery by Mrs. Henry Walters
This manuscript was made in 1262 by T’oros Roslin, the celebrated illuminator who extended the iconographic repertoire by defining a narrative Gospel cycle beyond the traditional portraits of the Evangelists. This signed manuscript was created at the scriptorium of Hromkla, which became the leading artistic center of Armenian Cilicia under the rule of Catholicos Constantine I (1221-1267). As an extensive colophon starting on fol. 406v explains, T’oros created this manuscript under commission from the nephew of Constantine, a priest also named T’oros. It is one of seven known manuscripts bearing T’oros Roslin’s signature, and it is the most sumptuous of them all, with 15 miniatures and 67 smaller illustrations. The style of the images suggests that T’oros had several assistants helping with the illustrations, though the overall quality remains extremely high. The manuscript was long cherished within the Armenian church. Even in the seventeenth century, its illumination served as a model for Armenian scribes, particularly Bargham and his son Mik’ayel; see Jerusalem, Armenian Patriarchate, no. 3438 and Washington DC, Freer Gallery, Ms. 36.15; in the latter manuscript, Mik’ayel explicitly refers to “the excellent scribe T’oros, surnamed Roslin.”
artist: Tʻoros Ṛoslin
Principal cataloger: Der Nersessian, Sirarpie
Principal cataloger: Landau, Amy
Principal cataloger: van Lint, Theo M
Cataloger: Herbert, Lynley
Cataloger: Noel, William
Copy editor: Dibble, Charles
Contributor: Bockrath, Diane
Contributor: Emery, Doug
Contributor: Pizzinato, Riccardo
Contributor: Tabritha, Ariel
Contributor: Toth, Michael B.
Conservator: Owen, Linda
Conservator: Quandt, Abigail
Diringer, David. The Illuminated Book: Its History and Production. London: Faber & Faber, 1958.
"Bulletin Codicologique." Scriptorium 26 (1972): pp. 130-246, p. 160 n. 154, p. 208 n. 402.
Randall, Lilian M. C. "Illuminated Manuscripts: Masterpieces in Miniature." The Walters Art Gallery Bulletin 37, no. 6 (1984): pp. 1-2.
Thanks are expressed to Professor Bernard Coulie (Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve) for kindly making available his bibliography on the Armenian manuscripts kept in the Walters Art Museum.
Mathews, Thomas F. Armenian Gospel Iconography: The Tradition of the Glajor Gospel. Washington, D.C. : Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, 1991, figs. 35a, 92b, 453a, 480b.
Miner, Dorothy. "Since De Ricci--Western Illuminated Manuscripts Acquired since 1934." Journal of the Walters Art Gallery 31-32 (1966): pp. 68-103.
Mathews, Thomas F. "L'Arménie en Amérique." Connaissance des Arts 506 (1994): pp. 90-97, p. 95, fig. 5.
Burin, Elizabeth. "Armenian Manuscript Illumination: Art from Christianity's Eastern Frontier." The Walters Art Gallery Bulletin 47, no. 6 (1994): pp. 4-5.
Mathews, Thomas F. and Roger S. Wieck, eds. Treasures in Heaven: Armenian Illuminated Manuscripts. New York: Pierpont Morgan Library, 1994, pp. 149-50, figs. 47, 48, pls. 12-14.
Der Nersessian, Sirarpie, and Sylvia Agemian. Miniature Painting in the Armenian Kingdom of Cicilia from the Twelfth to the Fourteenth Century. Dumbarton Oaks Studies 31. Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection. 1993.
Mahoney, Lisa. "T'oros Roslin and the Representation of Pagan Threat." Journal of the Walters Art Museum 68-69 (2010-2011): pp. 67-76, pp. 68-69, fig. 1 (fols. 203v, 204r), p. 71, figs. 3 (fol. 191r), 4 (fol. 38r), 5 (fol. 40r), 6 (fol. 66r), p. 72, fig. 7 (fol. 48r), p. 73 (fol. 19r).
"Comptes Rendus." Scriptorium 33 (1979): p. 327.
Der Nersessian, Sirarpie. Armenian Manuscripts in the Walters Art Gallery. Baltimore: Walters Art Gallery, 1973, pp. 10-30, no. 3.
Nersessian, Vrej. Treasures from the Ark: 1700 Years of Armenian Christian Art. London: British Library, 2001, p. 225, fig. 159.
Sanjian, Avedis K. A Catalogue of Medieval Armenian Manuscripts in the United States. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1976, pp. 273-287.
Der Nersessian, Sirarpie. Armenian Art. Trans. Sheila Bourne and Angela Olsen. London: Thames & Hudson, 1978, pp. 132-135, figs. 95-97.
Walters Art Gallery. Handbook of the Collection. Baltimore: Walters Art Gallery, 1936, p. 95.
Miner, Dorothy, ed. Early Christian and Byzantine Art: An Exhibition Held at the Baltimore Museum of Art, April 25-June 22 [1947]. Baltimore: Trustees of the Walters Art Gallery, 1947, p. 148, no. 750, pl. CVII.
Nersessian, Sirarpie Der. Armenia and the Byzantine Empire: A Brief Study of Armenian Art and Civilization. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1945, pp. 126-27, pl. 28.
Carr, Annemarie Weyl. Cyprus and the Devotional Arts of Byzantium in the Era of the Crusades. Burlington: Ashgate/Variorum, 2005.
These are pages that we pulled aside that disrupted the flow of the manuscript reader. These may be bindings, inserts, bookmarks, and various other oddities.
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