Ein nutzlich und wolgegrundt formular Manncherley schoner schriefften (A useful and well-grounded modelbook for many beautiful scripts) 1553

Wolfgang Fugger, of Nuremberg, Germany, made this modelbook of scripts sometime in the mid-16th century using woodcut printmaking on paper. This book gives us insight into the world of the artisan in the early modern period. Fugger’s pattern book reflects the premium placed on handwriting as a form of art and professional skill. During this period, the development of printing made books and visual information more widely available, but calligraphy maintained its importance as an element of social status. The book exemplifies the relationship between craft, commerce, and the rise of a print culture that served the needs of the growing merchant class. Historians of printing and the book trade can consult archival records, guild documents, and surviving examples of printed matter. These sources allow us to understand the social and economic contexts that shaped the production and consumption of printed material in the 16th century. Art like this reminds us that artistic choices always depend on social and institutional factors.