Dagulf Psalter

A devout Catholic, Charlemagne had aided the beleaguered pope by conquering the invading Lombard kingdom in 773, with the Frankish king maintaining close ties to the papacy thereafter.

[3] Adrian's death in 795 meant that this Psalter likely never made its intended journey to Rome, and is believed to have remained in Carolingian possession at an unspecified location for much of the 9th and 10th centuries.

[1] The manuscript’s folios remain at the Österreichische Nationalbibliothek in Vienna, while the book's ivory plates were removed and put on display at the Musée du Louvre.

Pious king, wise leader, marked with virtue and arms, For whom all becoming things are fitting, whatever on earth becomes you, Take the work of your humble servant Dagulf Graciously, read it indulgently and with learned mouth.

[1] The psalter's Old Testament Psalms and Canticles are written twenty-three lines per page in golden script, and is devoid of any portraits, illuminations, or images that would later typify Carolingian manuscripts.

[4] The front cover's upper register depicts David selecting men to record the Psalms, who surround the king while holding various writing utensils.