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    Give and Ye Shall Receive: Gift Giving in the Middle Ages

    December 16, 2014–March 15, 2015

    Getty Center

    Initial E: The Adoration of the Magi, cutting from a choir book, The Veneto, Franco dei Russi, about 1470s. The J. Paul Getty Museum

    Initial E: The Adoration of the Magi, cutting from a choir book, The Veneto, Franco dei Russi, about 1470s. The J. Paul Getty Museum

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    Alchandreus Presents His Work to a King, from Book of the Philosopher Alchandreus, Paris, Virgil Master, about 1405

    Alchandreus Presents His Work to a King, from Book of the Philosopher Alchandreus, Paris, Virgil Master, about 1405. The J. Paul Getty Museum

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  • Alchandreus Presents His Work to a King (detail), from Book of the Philosopher Alchandreus, Paris, Virgil Master, about 1405. The J. Paul Getty Museum

    Alchandreus Presents His Work to a King (detail), from  Book of the Philosopher Alchandreus, Paris, Virgil Master, about 1405. The J. Paul Getty Museum

  • Saint Christopher, book of hours, England, late 1300s. Collection of Robert McCarthy

    Saint Christopher, book of hours, England, late 1300s. Collection of Robert McCarthy

  • Duke Albrecht IV the Wise and His Wife Kunigunde of Austria Adoring the Virgin, from World Chronicle, Regensburg, about 1400-1410, with addition in 1487. The J. Paul Getty Museum

    Duke Albrecht IV the Wise and His Wife Kunigunde of Austria Adoring the Virgin, from World Chronicle, Regensburg, about 1400-1410, with addition in 1487. The J. Paul Getty Museum

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    Butterfly, Sweet Cherry, and Land Snails, Model Book of Calligraphy, Vienna, Joris Hoefnagel, 1561-62 (text) and about 1591-96 (illumination)

    Butterfly, Sweet Cherry, and Land Snails, from Model Book of Calligraphy, Vienna, Joris Hoefnagel, 1561-62 (text) and about 1591-96 (illumination). The J. Paul Getty Museum

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    Initial K: Caritas, Seville, cutting from a choir book, Master of the Cypresses, about 1430-40

    Initial K: Caritas, cutting from a choir book, Seville, Master of the Cypresses, about 1430-40. The J. Paul Getty Museum

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  • Initial C: St. Nicholas (detail), antiphonal, Bologna, Master of Gerona, late 1200s. The J. Paul Getty Museum

    Initial C: St. Nicholas (detail), antiphonal, Bologna, Master of Gerona, late 1200s. The J. Paul Getty Museum

  • Bishop Engilmar Celebrating Mass, benedictional, Regensburg, about 1030-40. The J. Paul Getty Museum

    Bishop Engilmar Celebrating Mass, benedictional, Regensburg, about 1030-40. The J. Paul Getty Museum

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    Christ in Majesty, sacramentary, Mainz or Fulda, about 1047; binding about 1150 and later.

    Christ in Majesty, sacramentary, Mainz or Fulda, about 1047; binding, Meuse River Valley, about 1150 and later. The J. Paul Getty Museum

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    Initial E: The Adoration of the Magi, cutting from a choir book, Italy, Franco dei Russi, about 1470s

    Initial E: The Adoration of the Magi, cutting from a choir book, Italy, Franco dei Russi, about 1470s

    Press the play button above to hear about this work.

Give and Ye Shall Receive: Gift Giving in the Middle Ages

December 16, 2014–March 15, 2015, Getty Center

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In the Middle Ages, gift exchange helped people define their relationships to family and friends, to acquaintances and strangers, to God and to church. This exhibition, drawn from the Museum's permanent collection, examines models for giving found in scripture and in the lives of the saints, explores how gift giving functioned in medieval society, and highlights the special role of the medieval book as a gift.

Related Events

A variety of special programs complement the exhibition. All events are free, unless otherwise noted. Seating reservations are required. For reservations and information, please call (310) 440-7300 or see information on planning a visit.

Talk
Curator's Gallery Talk

Christine Sciacca, assistant curator of manuscripts, and Anne Woollett, curator of paintings lead a talk on the exhibitions Give and Ye Shall Receive: Gift Giving in the Middle Ages and Spectacular Rubens: The Triumph of the Eucharist. Meet under the stairs in the Museum Entrance Hall.

Wednesday, December 17, 1:30 p.m.
Getty Center: Museum galleries

Curator's Gallery Talk

Christine Sciacca, assitant curator of manuscripts, J. Paul Getty Museum, leads a gallery tour of the exhibition Give and Ye Shall Receive: Gift Giving in the Middle Ages. Meet under the stairs in the Museum Entrance Hall.

Wednesday, March 11, 2:30 p.m.
Getty Center: Museum galleries

Demonstration
Artist at Work: Illuminated Manuscripts

Drop by as artist Sylvana Barrett demonstrates the traditional materials and techniques used to create the fine gilded and painted images found in illuminated manuscripts from the Middle Ages.

Sundays, December 21–January 18, 1:00–3:00 p.m.
1:00–2:00 p.m.: Pigments and gilding
2:00–3:00 p.m.: Medieval painting techniques
Getty Center: Museum Studios

Lecture
A Treasury of Devotion: Books of Hours and Their Owners

The Book of Hours was the main prayer book in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, and often used as a tool for learning how to read as well as how to pray. Virginia Reinburg, associate professor of history at Boston College, discusses how those fortunate enough to own books of hours often turned them into collections of favorite prayers, images, pilgrim souvenirs, and family lore.

Thursday, February 26, 7:00 p.m.
Getty Center: Museum Lecture Hall

Mobile Tour

Free GettyGuide® Multimedia Player

Celebrate the history of gift giving with manuscript experts. Pick up a multimedia player free of charge in the Museum Entrance Hall.

Video

Making Manuscripts Video
Making Manuscripts

Learn how illuminated manuscripts from the Middle Ages and early Renaissance were made in this short video.

#GettyCloser Meetup

Publications

Publications are available in the Getty Museum Store, by calling (310) 440-7333, or online at shop.getty.edu.

Exhibition Checklist

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