1493
First Edition
Incunabula
Hand-Colored Illustrations
Printers in the late 1400s began to use large formats and detailed illustrations so that more people would be eager to buy their books. The Nuremberg Chronicle is a complete history of the Christian world, commissioned by the Nuremberg merchants Sebald Schreyer and Sebastian Kammermeister. This Latin edition was produced first for religious and political buyers; a German edition followed later in the same year. The many woodcut illustrations in this copy have been colored by hand with inks and paints.
This special exhibition at the Folger features rare books from the collection of Stuart and Mimi Rose that present literary, cultural, and historical high points.