This leaf is from the brief transitional period when the new technology of printing with movable type was combined with the more labor intensive methods of hand painting. The earliest printers were trained in the manuscript tradition and incorporated the conventions of historiated initials and illustrations into their early work. At first they left those spaces blank for the illuminator to complete entirely by hand. Later they developed printing methods (using woodcuts or iron engravings) to decorate the leaves.

This superb hand-colored image shows the martyrdom of Saint John the Evangelist, sitting in a vessel of boiling oil. The recto of this vellum leaf is part of a calendar for the month of December and details the saint's days. The large initials KL for "kalender" are beautifully illuminated in blue and burnished gold leaf. The text is in Latin and is surrounded by elaborate iron engravings that feature cherubs and mythical creatures, including a centaur.

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Condition: B+

Superb color with some small abrasions at bottom right. There is marginal soiling, and the top and right margins are narrow, as issued.