( fl 1299). German scribe, illuminator and Franciscan friar. He probably came from Valkenburg (Fr. Fauquemont) in what is now Limburg, Netherlands. He is known to have written, noted and illuminated two Cologne Franciscan graduals (Bonn, Ubib., MS. 384; Cologne, Erzbischöf. Diöz.- & Dombib., MS. 1B), for the title pages of each bear his name and portrait. Both works are dated 1299 (probably begun one or two years previously), were almost certainly created for use in his own Franciscan house and contain 22 miniatures, including the title pages. Except for one initial, the illuminations are consistently by one hand. Both manuscripts are works of great refinement, although the gradual in Cologne is more ornately decorated than the Bonn manuscript. Characteristic of Johannes’s style are the small, supple figures set against tapestry-like ornamented backgrounds, deep, rounded folds of drapery and brilliant, enamel-like colours. These two manuscripts are particularly significant in being the first of a series of large choirbooks in the style typical of Cologne workshops of the first half of the 14th century. Stylistically, however, Johannes von Valkenburg’s work stands apart from that of the later Cologne artists. It seems that he developed his style from a series of earlier Cologne manuscripts (c. 1280; Baltimore, MD, Walters A.G., MSS 41 and 111) that were also made for Franciscan use and were in turn influenced by contemporary Mosan manuscripts. He also assimilated stylistic elements from Mosan manuscripts of the 1290s and contemporary stained-glass painting in Cologne.

• Johannes von Valkenburg
  • Gothic, §IV, 5(viii): Painting: Holy Roman Empire, c 1300–c 1400