Robert Emlen, curator at Brown University, and furniture designer, Timothy Philbrick examine the craftsmanship, features, and significance of the Goddard/Townsend desk and bookcase.
Books of hours made during the late Middle Ages and Renaissance were products of collaboration between scribes, illuminators, bookbinders, and, sometimes, the original patron or owner. A recent acquisition of a French book of hours made in Rouen around 1510 tells the story of this collaboration through the structure of its contents, iconography, and assembly.