Psalter of Louis the German Facsimile Edition

Made at the Benedictine abbey of Saint-Bertin in northeastern France in the mid-ninth century, the Psalter of Louis the German is a sumptuously illuminated book of Christian devotion focused on the biblical book of Psalms. It was created for Charlemagne's grandson Louis the German, the first king of East Francia. Every page has a painted frame, and Psalms 1 and 101 are announced by a title facing a decorated incipit page. The book concludes with an added full-page miniature of Arnulf of Carinthia (a grandson of Louis) kneeling before a scene of the Crucifixion.

The painted frames are paired so that they match on facing pages. Although the palette—gold with red, green, and ocher—is consistent and decorative motifs are shared through the book, subtle variations are revealed with each page turn.

Ornament Informed by Insular Art

The psalter was created near the English Channel, where exposure to artistic forms of the British Isles was strong. Its frames and the decorated initials betray the influence of that art, especially in the prevalence of interlace designs and stylized birds' and beasts' heads. The drop-shaped eyes of the birds' and beasts' heads and the use of unpainted parchment for the strapwork of the interlace point to a very close study of Insular art.

Made for a King

The opening pages comprise a framed title page (on the left) and a splendid framed incipit page with a large initial B that nearly fills the page (fols. 1v-2r). Embedded in the frames is a dedication to King Louis, dispersed in units of two or three gold letters on sixteen small panels with green backgrounds. It reads "To King Louis, life, health, and happiness forever."

Fine Carolingian Calligraphy on Display

The manuscript's text is written in Caroline Minuscule script in two columns on pages of nearly square proportions. The use of the two-column format forces the psalm verses to extend over two, three, or more lines. The verses are nonetheless clearly marked, with the opening majuscule letter in gold and set off into the left margin. Rubrics—headings in red—are in Uncial, a script revived by Carolingian scribes for use as a display script.

Arnulf Contemplates the Crucifixion and the Cross

The only figural illustration is a full-page miniature of the Crucifixion that was added to the psalter toward the end of the ninth century, probably in Regensburg (fol. 120r). Christ is shown on the cross flanked by the mourning Virgin Mary and Saint John the Evangelist.

Arnulf of Carinthia is shown outside the frame reaching in to grasp the cross where it narrows above the ground. By traversing the frame, Arnulf enters historical time to witness the Crucifixion. He also holds the cross in his own time as he recites the prayer that occupies the preceding three columns (fols. 119r-v).

After Arnulf

The manuscript was owned in the sixteenth century by Johannes Swane of Recklinghausen and then Heinrich Smelinck, a magistrate of Essen. It is first recorded in the collection of the Hohenzollern electors of Brandenburg in the time of Friedrich Wilhelm (1620-1688), Elector of Brandenburg.

The electors' collection came to be known as the Königliche Bibliothek in 1701, when Elector Friedrich III (1657-1713) became King of Prussia. In 1810, the library became part of the Prussian State and was after 1918 named the Preußische Staatsbibliothek. After the political disruptions of the twentieth century, the library emerged as the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin. The current binding of partially gilt tooled brown leather over pasteboard dates from 1843.