Christopher Plantin and Engraved Book Illustrations in Sixteenth-Century Europe

This is an interdisciplinary study of Christopher Plantin's pioneering role in the production and distribution of books with engraved and etched illustrations in sixteenth-century Europe. Using the rich archival sources at the Plantin-Moretus Museum in Belgium, Karen Bowen and Dirk Imhof examine the artists that worked on these illustrations, the types of illustrations that appealed to specific markets, and the technological, cultural and economic constraints under which Christopher Plantin operated as he ventured into this new area of publishing. They demonstrate how Plantin's innovations led to a revolutionary change in taste for book illustrations and place his work within the broader context of the European book trade of the late sixteenth-century and Antwerp's political, economic, cultural and religious history. This is a major contribution to the history of the book, art history and the economic and social history of early modern Europe.