Calligraphy Master's Album by Franz Joachim Brechtel

The Calligraphy Master's Album by Franz Joachim Brechtel is a wonderful example of the flourishing of the art of calligraphy after the invention of printing in Europe, which also brought about the standardization of printed fonts. This in particular led to an increasing demand for individually calligraphed documents, such as in chanceries and trading offices for appropriately designed letters to members of the nobility, business letters and deeds. Against this backdrop, Franz Joachim Brechtel (1554–1593) produced an incredibly artistic sample of his skills in 1573 at the age of just 19. The 24 landscape-format leaves display a breathtaking wealth of forms and great artistry. Using colored and golden inks, he created a true gem of Renaissance calligraphy, which he dedicated to Johann Neudörffer (1543–1581). The latter was also a “Schreibmeister” or penman and the son of Johann Neudörffer the Elder (1497–1563), who was probably the most significant penman of the German Renaissance and who played a key role in the development of Fraktur script.