One of Only Two Known Vellum Copies
Missale ad consuetudinem ecclesie Romane. Paris, Guillaume Eustace, 1511.
A remarkably delicate and refined Parisian Missale Romanum printed entirely on vellum in 1511 and surviving as one of only two known copies. The volume combines elegant small-format typography, metalcut illustration, and liturgical functionality in a form that feels almost jewel-like in comparison to the monumental folio Missals of the period.
Among all the Missals in the collection, this is perhaps the most intimate.
Edition & Bibliographic Information
†8 a-18 m10 n-z8 v8 A-D8 E4 10 = 8 leaves, 227 numbered leaves, 13 leaves, together 248 leaves. Printed in black and red throughout on vellum. Octavo (171 × 107 mm).
Illustrated with a half-page printer’s device on the title within a four-sided border and seven half-column illustrations, all in metalcut, together with one full-page Crucifixion woodcut, numerous four- to nine-line metalcut initials on criblé grounds, red lombards, paragraph marks, and musical notation printed in black on red four-line staves.
Modern violet velvet binding over wooden boards with clasps and chased silver mounts, vellum endleaves, and gilt edges; preserved in a red half-morocco case lined with blue felt and signed J. & S. Brockman.
A Parisian Vellum Missal — Small and Exquisite
What distinguishes this Missal above all is its extraordinary fineness of execution.
The typography, illustrations, and metalcut initials possess a miniature precision rarely encountered even in luxury liturgical printing. Unlike the heavier visual density of many contemporary Missals, the decorative program here feels restrained and highly controlled. Even the Crucifixion woodcut, compressed into a remarkably small space, still accommodates Mary, John, Mary Magdalene, mounted Roman soldiers, and the two thieves crucified beside Christ. The compositional economy is astonishing.
The criblé initials contribute further to the atmosphere of refinement. Rather than overwhelming the page, they create a subtle ornamental rhythm throughout the book.
Printed Entirely on Vellum
The true luxury of the volume, however, lies in the material itself.
The entire Missal was printed on vellum.
Van Praet, Brunet, Ebert, and Graesse each recorded only a single vellum example, apparently the same copy. The present Missal therefore represents only the second known vellum copy of the edition. Its survival alone is exceptional.
Unlike monumental choir books intended for collective liturgical performance, this compact format suggests a more personal mode of use: portable, tactile, devotional, and highly aristocratic in character.
Guillaume Eustace and Parisian Liturgical Printing
Guillaume Eustace belonged to one of the important Parisian printing families active in the early sixteenth century. By 1511 Paris had become one of Europe’s great centers for liturgical printing, balancing late Gothic traditions with increasingly sophisticated Renaissance ornament and typographic clarity.
This Missal reflects that transitional moment perfectly. The structure remains deeply medieval in its liturgical function, while the elegance of the page already anticipates the calmer visual discipline of the French Renaissance.
Provenance
The provenance begins unusually early, with a partially concealed inscription by a parish priest dated 1629 mentioning “la misere par la guerre,” a brief but haunting reference to the devastation of war.
After a long gap, the Missal entered the celebrated collection of the American collector Carrie Estelle Doheny (1875–1958), one of the great female bibliophiles of the twentieth century. Two additional Roman Missals in the present collection likewise derive from her library.
Provenance
On leaf p3v at lower margin: “Louis Roch curé de Grilly & vicaire […] Darmance en Lanne 1629 le 3 de […] Juin, anne de misere par la guerre.” Later ownership inscription “M. E. Dobson. Feb. 1891.” Ex-libris of Carrie Estelle Doheny; sold Christie’s, New York, 14 December 2001, lot 211.
Literature
Not in Adams or BM STC French; Bohatta 325; Brunet III, 1759; Ebert 14151; Graesse IV, 549; Moreau 1511, no. 166; Van Praet, Bibliothèques I, 60, no. 134; Weale/Bohatta 1004.
For a fuller scholarly description and illustrations, see Wunderkammer Catalogue 90, number 16.
