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    Looking up of a detail of a sculpture by Henry Moore outside the East Building

    Research Associates’ Reports

    Matthew J. Westerby
    Center 41

    Matthew J. Westerby

    Reimagining a Hieronymite Choir Book from Seville

    Master of the Cypresses (Nicolás Gómez), Initial T (Terribilis est?), second half of the 15th century, miniature on vellum, National Gallery of Art, Washington, Rosenwald Collection, 1964.8.1219

    This new project examines a group of cuttings from a richly illuminated choir book in the Rosenwald Collection at the National Gallery of Art. Excavating their original liturgical context, I argue the parchment fragments come from a Gradual created for the Observant Hieronymites of San Isidoro del Campo, near Seville. Beyond discovering new evidence for their patronage and iconography, I also aim to reimagine the cultural processes behind fragmentation and reuse. As part of this research, I designed the program “Fragments and Frameworks: Illuminated Manuscripts and Illustrated Books in Digital Humanities” to take place in spring and fall of 2021.