The Melissande Psalter was made between 1131 and 1143 in Jerusalem, Palestine. It was probably made for Queen Melissande, daughter of Baldwin and wife of Fulk of Anjou. We are getting a glimpse of an item of western European culture in what must have seemed something of an outpost in a strange land, despite it being the spiritual heart of European religion. The script of the Latin text is a form known as rotunda, or alternatively Roman minuscule. It was used in Italy and was a broader and more rounded type than the angular Gothic styles of more northern parts. In fact, the letter forms differ little from those of its predecessor, Caroline minuscule. This page shows the first page of a prayer to St Mary Magdalene, a popular saint in the middle ages as she represented the redemption of sinners.
This manuscript has been digitised in full by the British Library and can be found here.
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