Denise Poncher before a Vision of Death, Master of the Chronique scandaleuse, in the Poncher Hours, French, about 1500 @credits In the Middle Ages, hope mingled with fear concerning death and the afterlife, providing stirring subjects for manuscript illumination. Depictions of souls in paradise, the rewards of the blessed, and God’s mercy reassured Christian audiences, while sometimes horrific illustrations of funerals, demons, and the punishment of the wicked prompted the pious to repen
