Single leaf from an Antiphonary made for the church of San Dominico in Perugia.
Large historiated initial "S" (of Si [If]), beginning the first Matins response for the first lesson for the Divine Office for the fourth Sunday after Easter.
Decoration: The lower part of the "S" contains two crouching bearded naked men, perhaps a reference to those in captivity in Babylon cited in Psalm 136:5, the source of the response.
Artist: Probably by the same artist responsible for a six-volume Antiphonary made for the church of S. Lorenzo in Perugia (cf. Antonino Caleca, Miniature in Umbria I. La Biblioteca Capitolare di Perugia, Florence,1969, MS 15, pp. 91 and 177. Fig. 483 shows a less elaborate "S" than the present leaf.and without the naked men.
Musical notation: 4 and 5 4-line staves in red ink, square notation.
Probably from the lost fifth volume of a 14-volume set, the remaining 13 volumes are in the Biblioteca Comunale Augusta in Perugia. Four other leaves from the fifth volume are now in the Fondazione Cini in Venice (cf. Pietro Toesca), Monumente e studi per la storia della miniature italiana: La collezione di Ulrico Hoepli, Milan, 1930, nos 72-75. Another leaf was sold at Sotheby's 22 June 1993, lot 51.