Initial H with St. Nicholas of Myra and the three youths miraculously restored to life This initial begins an unidentified chant probably sung at the first response of the first nocturn of Matins for the feast of St. Nicholas of Myra (Dec. 6). According to his legend, St. Nicholas miraculously restored to life three children who had been murdered, dismembered, and salted down in a pickling tub by a nefarious inn-keeper. This image shows the reverse of a cutting with an historiated initial from an antiphonary. Initial L with the Martyrdom of St. Laurence of Rome This initial begins the first response of the first nocturn of Matins for the feast of St. Laurence of Rome (Aug. 10): 'Levita Laurentius bonam opus operatus est ...' (The deacon Lawrence performed a pious act). According to his legend, the third-century saint was martyred under the persecution of Roman Emperor Valerian who ordered him to be burned alive on a gridiron. Initial F with St. John the Baptist This initial begins the first response of the first nocturn of Matins for the feast of St. John the Baptist (June 24), 'Fuit homo missus a deo ...' (There was a man sent from God). These cuttings can be dated to ca. 1260s-1270s.
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