Minneapolis Institute of Art

The Nuremberg Chronicle, first Latin edition

Michael Wolgemut; Wilhelm Pleydenwurff; Author: Hartmann Schedel; Printer: Anton Koberger

Date

1493

Medium

Woodcuts and letterpress, bound volume

Department

European Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

At the end of the 15th century, the new industry of book printing reached its zenith in Nuremberg, Germany. This book, which was written by Dr. Hartmann Schedel, recounts the history of the world from Creation to the early 1490s with lessons in religion and geography intermingled with unusual and interesting facts and phenomena. The expensive enterprise was funded by Sebald Schreyer and S. Kammermeister, who hired Anton Koberg's firm to print it. Koberg operated twenty-four presses and printed 1, 500 copies of the book in Latin and an additional 1, 000 copies in German. The copy on display is from the first Latin edition. This edition was more carefully laid out and printed because it appealed to a more learned audience. The Chronicle contains 1809 prints taken from 645 actual woodcuts, resulting in 1164 repetitions. The woodcuts were created in the workshop of Michael Wohlgemut, who was assisted by his stepson Wilhelm Pleydenwurff. In addition to his work on the Chronicle, Wohlgemut is famous as the instructor of Albrecht Dürer, who some scholars believe contributed several images to this book Europe

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