A miniature on vellum from a manuscript Book of Hours.

A wonderful arch-topped miniature of the Birth of the Saviour : in an open stable we see the Mother, Joseph and the Child. In the mountainous back ground a shepherd is coming to see the Baby and a house of Bethlehem is depicted. Around the miniature there are acanthus leaves, flowers, a bird and a dog sitting on its haunches!! The whole painting is rubbed, but the high quality of the work is still visible! The Book of Hours is probably from Rouen in France and made around 1450.

Reference: CL49