The Silos Codex is one of the most richly illustrated surviving copies of Beatus of Liébana's commentary on the book of Apocalypse , the final book of the Christian Bible. The book includes fifty-three brightly colored full-page miniatures, some of which extend onto the opposite page, and an additional seventy-seven smaller pictures.
In addition to the main Beatus text, this manuscript includes a section of music for the liturgy of the Divine Office, Saint Jerome's commentary on the Old Testament book of Daniel, and other texts. The project was initiated by Abbot Fortunius and completed under Abbot Johannes.
Most of the text was completed on April 18, 1091, and the illustrations were completed eighteen years later on July 1, 1109, apparently after a long hiatus. They all wrote in Visigothic Minuscule, the characteristic script of the Iberian Peninsula at the time. By the mid-seventeenth century, it had come into the possession of Antonio of Aragon (1618-1650). The foredges were valid and the titles were added after the manuscript entered the British Museum.
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For more information on the Beatus model, read our blog article by Amy R. Miller (PhD, Medieval Art History, University of Toronto).
We have 1 facsimile edition of the manuscript "Beatus of Liébana - Silos Codex": Beato de Liébana, Códice de Santo Domingo de Silos facsimile edition, published by M. Moleiro Editor, 2001-2003
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