The volume is dedicated to the subject of book illumination and contains contributions that present unknown
material or, through their methodological approach, open up new perspectives for this research area and medieval
art history. The article by Jeffrey Hamburger addresses the diagrams in Lothar de Segni`s De Missarum Mysteriis
and their significance for understanding medieval thought. He demonstrates how, from an art-historical standpoint,
these predominantly geometrical representations can assist in the interpretation of medieval art works. Liselotte
Saurma-Jeltsch looks at narration in miniature cycles and analyses the temporal dimension of image reception in
books. A new source for pictorial cycles in the border decoration of medieval books of hours has been discovered
by Francois Avril with the tarot cards designed by Mantegna. The remaining contributions go back to a workshop
that took place at the Institut für Kunstgeschichte from 14-16 September 2007 and dealt extensively for the first
time with the phenomenon of painted book decoration in printed books. Book illumination in incunabula is no
marginal phenomenon: it represents a manifestation that accompanies and contributes to the transition from
handwritten to printed books. Its investigation promises insights into the course of a medial change central to
emerging modernity. The majority of the painted book decoration produced for printed codices from the middle of
the 15th century surpasses that of painted book decoration for contemporaneous manuscripts. Since it is now
generally thought necessary to deal comprehensively with the immensely rich production of book illumination in
the 15th and early 16th centuries, the illuminated printed codices represent - both in terms of quantity and
methodology - a particular challenge.