The Psalter of Henry VIII is a 16th-century

illuminated Illuminated may refer to: * "Illuminated" (song), by Hurts * Illuminated Film Company, a British animation house * ''Illuminated'', alternative title of Black Sheep (Nat & Alex Wolff album) * Illuminated manuscript See also * Illuminate (disambi ...

psalter that belonged to

Henry VIII of England Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

. It is now in the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...

as MS Royal 2 A xvi. The king commissioned the book in the early 1540s from the French illuminator Jean Mallard, who had at one time worked for Francis I. The psalter contains eight miniatures, amongst them scenes of Henry playing the harp with his jester

Will Somers William Sommers (or Somers; died 15 June 1560) was the best-known court jester of Henry VIII of England. Early life He was said to have been born in Shropshire, and came to the attention of Richard Fermor, a merchant of the Staple at Calais, ...

in attendance, and of the king reading in his bedroom. Two scenes show Henry as King David: in one killing Goliath, in the other in the role of a penitent. The book has marginal annotations made by the king. Henry's Psalter can be viewed - the full 1540 book, complete with Henry's own handwritten notes in the margins at the British Library's Virtual Books websit
here
or on the British Library's Digitised Manuscripts website
here

References

* Illuminated psalters 1540s books Henry VIII British Library Royal manuscripts {{manuscript-art-stub