Emblematum liber Project

Emblem books are a collection of allegorical images with text, most popular in the 16th and 17th centuries.

Andrea Alciato wrote the first and most widely disseminated emblem book, Eblematum liber or Emblemata in 1531. For the next 100 years, new editions were published with additional emblems and new woodcuts.

I reproduced several emblems over the years as a way to hone my skills in block printing, but I never really bothered to dig deeper into the overall meaning and origins of the images. Opportunity arose when I was recently taught how to create simple leather-bound journals. I now had an excuse to reproduce my own (albeit very small) edition of Emblemata.

The Plan

  • 11 emblems from Emblematum liber plus a title page using editions available through the University of Glasgow

  • Carve 2 emblems per month starting in Jan 2024 (going from most complicated to least complicated)

  • Finish book by Oct 2024

  • Of note: All prints you see here are test prints. I don’t plan on making final prints until I get the typesetting plates (hence why they all look a bit messy).

Supplies

  • 5x7 soft maple woodblocks

  • Paper: BFK Rives, Cream

  • Ink : Cranfield Caligo Safe Wash

  • Bookmaking supplies and leather: Tandy Leather

  • Typesetting : Boxcar Press

  • Office Assistants : 2 cats

Emblem #1

I started off by forgetting Rule 101 of printmaking : remember to flip the image on the wood before carving. Given how many mistakes are in the various editions of Emblemata, I decided to keep going.

This emblem took me 7 hours from first carve to test print, and is the most complex of the emblems I’ve chosen.

Emblem #2

The story attached to this imagery is that of Circe from Homer’s Odyssey. The “moral” is a very misogynist one… shocker.

Emblem #3

I’ve seen this imagery in a lot of places outside of my research into emblems. I had always thought it had something to do with being “all seeing”. However, this image is suppose to convey that one should stay calm and in control.

Emblem #4

I chose this purely because it reminded me of The Neverending Story.

Emblem #5

This one doesn’t really have much of a story or moral but is more a description of an ivy plant.