Leaf from the Biblia Sacra Latina (Vulgate Bible). Handwritten on vellum. Red and blue chapter numerals and other ornamentation. The work contains wide margins and historiated initials.

Leaf from the Hours of the Virgin. The handwritten page dates to 1440-1450, is Flemish, and made of velum. The recto contains 13 lines of unornamented text. The verso also has 13 lines with one rubricated phrase. The letter O is historiated in red, blue, and gold and connected to marginal flourishes in gold and blue. The Hours of the Virgin, part of the Book of Hours that include devotional prayers for different times of the day. Hours of the Virgin, also known as the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary, contained psalms, lessons, hymns, and prayers said at each of the eight canonical hours: Matins, Lauds, Prime, Terce, Sext, None, Vespers, and Compline. The Book of Hours was the bestselling book of the Middle Ages.

Leaf from the Hours of the Virgin. The page is made of velum and was created in France around 1450. The recto contains 18 lines with the first 7 lines have been rubricated. The letter D in the middle of the page has been historiated red, blue, and gold and connected to marginal flourishes. The verso also has 18 lines with several phrases rubricated. The Hours of the Virgin, part of the Book of Hours that include devotional prayers for different times of the day. Hours of the Virgin, also known as the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary, contained psalms, lessons, hymns, and prayers said at each of the eight canonical hours: Matins, Lauds, Prime, Terce, Sext, None, Vespers, and Compline. The Book of Hours was the bestselling book of the Middle Ages.

Leaf from the Hours of the Virgin. The page is made of velum originated in Northern France between 1450 and 1460. The recto contains 16 lines with rubricated and historiated initials and rectangular ornamentation in red, blue, and gold. The verso has 16 lines with rubricated and historiated initials, flowers, and rectangular ornamentation in red, blue, and gold. The Hours of the Virgin, part of the Book of Hours that which are devotional prayers for different times of the day. Hours of the Virgin, also known as the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary, contained psalms, lessons, hymns, and prayers said at each of the eight canonical hours: Matins, Lauds, Prime, Terce, Sext, None, Vespers, and Compline. The Book of Hours was the bestselling book of the Middle Ages.

Leaf from the Book of Hours (Use of Rome) that was printed by Philippe Pigouchet for Simon Vostre in Paris, France, 1496. The leaf is of velum and decorated with metal cuts along the edges. This is an incunabula leaf as it is printed rather than handwritten. The recto contains 27 printed lines with hand painted rubricated and historiated initials and rectangular ornamentation in red, blue, and gold. The metal cuts depict scenes regarding the crucifixion and Jesus visiting Mary afterward. The verso has 27 lines and does not include hand painted ornamentations. The metal cuts depict scenes of Jesus and his apostles. The Book of Hours include psalms, lessons, hymns, and devotional prayers said at each of the eight canonical hours: Matins, Lauds, Prime, Terce, Sext, None, Vespers, and Compline. The Book of Hours was the bestselling book of the Middle Ages.

The H.M. Briggs Library holds five illuminated manuscript leaves, or single pages, consisting of religious texts dating from the 13th to the 15th centuries. One leaf is from the Biblia Sacra Latina (Vulgate Bible), handwritten on vellum and dating to the 13th century. It features wide margins, red and blue chapter numerals, historiated and illuminated initials, and intricate penwork ornamentation.

The remaining four leaves are from the Hours of the Virgin, a section of the Book of Hours, a devotional text widely used during the Middle Ages. These 15th-century vellum leaves originate from France, Flanders, and Paris, with one printed incunabula leaf produced by Philippe Pigouchet for Simon Vostre in 1496. The leaves include rubricated and historiated initials, decorative borders, and elaborate ornamentation in red, blue, and gold. The Hours of the Virgin, also known as the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary, includes prayers, hymns, psalms, and lessons said at each of the eight canonical hours. The leaves were acquired from the estate of Morris Elmer Nellermoe, Jr. (1926–2004).