Matthäus aus BL Eg 1070, f. 102

Miniature of Matthew, with partial foliate border carried by an angel. Image taken from f. 102 of Book of Hours, Use of Paris ('The Hours of René d'Anjou'). Written in Latin, calendar and rubrics in French.

The Evangelist St. Matthew is one of the four authors of the Gospels in the New Testament often depicted in Christian art with his symbol, the angel. St. Matthew is typically depicted as a bearded man, writing or holding a book, with an angel nearby. The angel symbolizes the divine inspiration that guided St. Matthew as he wrote his Gospel.

The Egerton Manuscript Collection is named after its founder, Sir Thomas Egerton (1540-1617), 1st Viscount Brackley, was a lawyer, statesman, and patron of the arts during the reigns of Queen Elizabeth I and King James I of England. He served as Lord Keeper of the Great Seal and later as Lord Chancellor of England, holding high positions in the legal and political realms.

Sir Thomas Egerton acquired a substantial number of historical and literary manuscripts. In 1617, shortly before his death, Sir Thomas Egerton bequeathed his collection of manuscripts to the British Museum, which was the precursor to the British Library.