The Art of the Pen: Calligraphy from the Court of the Emperor Rudolf II

Hendrix, Lee; Vignau-Wilberg, Thea

ISBN 10: 0892366222 / ISBN 13: 9780892366224

Published by J. Paul Getty Museum, 2003

May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G0892366222I4N00

Synopsis:

Flamboyant calligraphy selected from the marvelous Mira calligraphiae monumenta

The court of Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II produced nothing more amazing than the Mira colligrophioe monumenta, a flamboyant demonstration of two arts-calligraphy and miniature painting. The project began when Rudolf's predecessor commissioned the master calligrapher Georg Bocskay to create a model book of calligraphy.

A preeminent scribe, Bocskay assembled a vast selection of contemporary and historic scripts. Many were intended not for practical use but for virtuosic display. Years later, at Rudolf's behest, court artist Joris Hoefnagel filled the spaces on each manuscript page with images of fruit, flowers, insects, and other natural minutiae. The combination of word and images is rare and, on its tiny scale, constitutes one of the marvels of the Central European Renaissance.

The manuscript is now in the collections of the Getty Museum. Forty-eight of its pages are reproduced in this book, containing samples of classic italic hands; historical, invented, and exhibition hands; Rotunda, a classicizing humanist script based on Carolingian miniscule; classically based scripts; and Gothic blackletter and chancery.

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Art of the Pen: Calligraphy from the ...
Publisher: J. Paul Getty Museum
Publication Date: 2003
Binding: Hardcover
Condition: Very Good
Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket