Gaston Phoebus - The Master of Game
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A best seller, straight from the Middle Ages.
Gaston III, count of Foix and Béarn in the south of France, wrote his Livre de Chasse, or Master of Game, in the years 1387–1389. This work is the most famous record of medieval hunting and a fascinating piece of cultural history.
This magnificently painted, hand-written copy of the original text of the Master of Game was commissioned by Duke Philip the Bold, brother of the bibliophile Duc de Berry. In it, Gaston de Foix, known as “Phoebus” after the Greek sun god, describes the then common forms of hunting. He also presents an impressive natural history, which was used as a text book well into the 19th century.
Right from the beginning, the Master of Game was a great success. The courts of France and Burgundy saw in it more than a study of nature; instead it was considered a work of art that inspired painters and writers for many generations. Its 128 folios contain extraordinary miniatures. Their bright and fresh colours on the sumptuous, gold grounds present sensitive and subtle painting techniques.. The generous layout of the paintings in the Master of Game and their particular effect of depth are reminiscent of exquisite tapestries.
Gaston Phoebus – The Master of Game is published as a Facsimile limited edition in the format of 385 x 286mm. This edition is strictly limited to 980 hand-numbered copies. Eighty seven vivid miniatures, richly ornate with gold leaf and brush gold, 126 imaginative large initials, as well as abundant scrollwork made of shining golden, red and blue foliage make the 128 folios a perfect background for the whole splendour of the French Gothic period. Written in a wonderful, if not perfect textura script, the French text is clearly legible to this day.
The binding of this edition is modelled on a blue
silk binding from the library of King Louis XII. The fine silk was
especially woven for this purpose and embroidered with golden lilies,
the emblem of the French royal dynasty.The spine of the volume is
perfected is covered in parchment.
Yves Christe (Geneva), Antoine d’Escayrac-Lauture (Kasteeel Westerlo), William Voelkle (New York) and François Avril (Paris) present a comprehensive historic and art-historic analysis of the work in the inciteful commentary volume. The volume also contains a complete transcription and translation of the French text so that today’s readers may immerse themselves in the aristocratic culture of the Middle Ages
Both the facsimile and the commentary volumes are presented in a protective case of acrylic glass.
