A Short History of the Middle Ages Fourth Edition

Plate 3.7: Psalter Page (2nd quarter, 9th cent.). In this sumptuous manuscript dedicated to King Louis the
German (r.843–876) the artist (a monk at the monastery of Saint Omer, today in northern France) drew on
the decorative, abstract traditions of the British Isles. Nevertheless, following the principle of “less is more,”
he pared down the colors and the “busyness” of his model, as a quick comparison with Plate 2.7, p. 69,
illustrates.