University of Pittsburgh

Frick Fine Arts Library

Book of Hours

The Litany

The litany is composed in a hierarchical order beginning with God, followed by the Trinity, Mary in a threefold invocation: Mary, Mary as the mother of God, Mary  as the Virgin of virgins.  After Mary come  angels and archangels and patriarchs and prophets as a group.  The next section consists of apostles and evangelists beginning with St. Peter as seen  on folio 131v below.  Each line ends with the letters or, the beginning of Ora pro nobis,pray for us.  After the Apostles are group invocations for disciples of the Lord, and the Holy Innocents.  A listing of individual martyrs, and then  confessors follow, with a list of female saints finishing up the litany.  Sometimes  regional saints or saints of particular interest to the patron are included.  In this book of hours the saints listed included Denis and Genevieve, suggesting Paris as the place of origin  for the litany.  Otherwise the saints invoked in this litany are common, popular saints found in many litanies and calendars.
 
 
 
 

Copyright:  Images, Frick Fine Arts Library, University of Pittsburgh; Text, Susan Blackman and Judith Golden.  Created by Judith Golden. Questions or comments may be addressed to Judith Golden at jkgst7+@pitt.edu
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