A
psalter is a volume containing the
Book of Psalms, often with other devotional material bound in as well, such as a
liturgical calendar and
litany of the Saints. Until the later medieval emergence of the
book of hours, psalters were the books most widely owned by wealthy lay persons and were commonly used for learning to read. Many Psalters were richly illuminated and they include some of the most spectacular surviving examples of medieval book art.