Letter D c. 16th century

Curator: Anton Woensam von Worms offers us this "Letter D", a woodcut print teeming with life. It feels so... robust, doesn't it? Editor: Indeed, the graphic lines create a rather captivating density. I'm intrigued by its potential function within illustrated books or documents of the time. Curator: Observe how the letter itself is integrated—almost unwillingly!—into this bustling scene of cherubic figures, flora, and fauna. The letterform is nearly swallowed by the narrative, resisting its function. Editor: Perhaps reflective of a period where the role of the printed word was still evolving, before standardization fully took hold. The image serves to decorate, but also to assert a certain authority, a visual weight. Curator: Precisely. The texture, the sheer black-and-white contrast, amplifies the letter's presence. I find myself drawn to the subtle interplay of solid form and intricate detail. Editor: I'm struck by the power this small format image could have held. A single letter, a world contained.