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The collections of museums both in France and abroad have no equivalent to King François I’s Book of Hours. Apart from Benvenuto Cellini’s salt cellar in Vienna, it is the only piece of precious metalwork directly associated with this king and is, to date, the only known precious book binding from France dating from the reigns of François I and the last Valois kings.

This tiny handwritten prayer book (8.5 x 6.5 cm) is decorated with sixteen full-page painted illustrations and numerous illuminated initials. It can be dated thanks to the inscription ‘1532’ that appears in its ornamentation.

King François I’s Book of Hours is a masterpiece of precious metalwork from the reign of François I. With its enameled gold binding, embellished with gemstones and two large, intaglio-engraved, oval carnelian plaques, it is also a monument to the jeweler’s art.

In 2018, more than 8,500 donors helped bring this French royal treasure back to its country of origin.