Book collectors who peruse enough auction and dealer catalogs will occasionally encounter terms that are more usually encountered in catalogs devoted to agriculture or horticulture. Acanthus, for example.
Stylized representations of Acanthus spinosus have for centuries been a popular adornment for all types of manuscripts, as can be seen in this 15th century example from a French translation of Saint Augustine's De Civitate Dei held by the Koninklijke Bibliotheek...
...and in this 15th century example from the Livre des merveilles held by the Bibliothèque nationale de France
Note that the coloration in both instances is not exactly what one usually finds in the natural world. As ODLIS observes, this plant was
used in Antiquity to ornament Corinthian capitals and later as a decorative motif in medieval art, especially in the borders and initial letters of illuminated manuscripts where it usually appears painted in unrealistic colors (red, yellow, blue, purple), often in combination with small images of flowers, birds, insects, and animals.
It is the fleshiness of the leaves that sets acanthus ornamentation apart from another very popular type of manuscript foliation, rinceaux, seen below in the 15th century Burnet Psalter held by University of Aberdeen Library...
...and in the 15th century Belles Heures of Jean de Berry held by The Cloisters at the Metropolitan Museum of Art:
As can be readily seen, rinceaux is composed of an intricately branching pattern of thin "string" foliage, more spiky in appearance and usually less colorful than acanthus.
Both types of foliage appear in some manuscripts, such as this example from a Book of Hours held by The Morgan Library:
Of course, such foliation appears not only in medieval manuscripts. When William Morris revitalized the private press movement at the end of the 19th century, for example, acanthus and other types of foliation were a major decorative motif that he worked into titles such as the Kelmscott Chaucer...
...as well as into his numerous tapestries, wallpapers and stained glass:
Book collectors interested in pursuing the subject of floral and similar motifs in medieval manuscript illumination may find titles such as those depicted below especially useful:
Many more such titles exist for specific periods and countries:
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