Woodtyper

Woodtyper, Notes on Large and Ornamented Type and Related Matters

"Woodtyper is an online journal focusing on wood type and related topics, such as large-scale lettering, decorative typefounding, letterpress printing, sign painting, penmanship, poster printing, engraving, etc. It is edited by Nick Sherman."

I just discovered woodtyper.com, it's an amazing blog!
If you are at all interested in type, letterpress, or vintage aesthetics.

*Quote and images borrow from woodtyper.com. Go support the site.

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 While exploring woodtyper.com woodtyper.com, I discovered that American Wood Type: 1828-1900

Notes on the Evolution of Decorated and Large Types, a book I longed for but it's been out of print for before I was born, is now being reprinted, again. This time in paperback form by Matt Kelsey at the Liber Apertus Press. Available from Liber Apertus Press for $29.95, what a great resource.

Zoologie

Recently I acquired the book Éléments de Zoologie {1891}.

Among the many beautiful illustrations were these curious skeletal plates.

The Devil's Bible

The Codex Gigas also known as The Devil's Bible, once considered the eighth wonder of the world.

Spanning three feet in length and weighing 165 lbs, the Codex Gigas —early 13th century— is the largest medieval manuscript in the world. It is the only book that seems to be simultaneously the Bible, a grimoire, a historical text, and guide to healing. It is also the only Bible that contains an illumination of the Devil.


Even more mysterious is that this book was written by a single hand. The creation of this tome would have taken one man decades to complete. How could this be given that there are no mistakes made in the execution of the book, and that time would have aged the author resulting in inconsistencies in the calligraphy?

According to legend the scribe was a monk who broke his monastic vows and was sentenced to be walled up alive. In order to forbear this harsh penalty he promised to create in one single night a book to glorify the monastery forever, including all human knowledge. Near midnight he became sure that he could not complete this task alone, so he made a special prayer, not addressed to God but to the fallen archangel Lucifer, asking him to help him finish the book in exchange for his soul. The devil completed the manuscript and the monk added the devil's picture out of gratitude for his aid.

It is also speculated that the inscription of various exorcism spells is the monk trying to exorcise the devil out by himself. ~Wikipedia

National Geographic link.

A - B - R - A - C - A - D - A - B - R - A

Taschen releases another gorgeous collection:

Magic, 1400s-1950s

The first thing I noticed when I saw this book besides the title and the image on the cover, was the massive size of the book, 11.4" x 17.3" and 650 pages.


Magic, 1400s-1950s, is a brilliant collection of images full of color, wonder, spirits, demons, skulls, inspiration, and the impossible. From conjuring to Houdini, it covers it all. Fans of magic—and Magick—the supernatural and paranormal, vintage graphics, or the macabre, will enjoy this book. The book may be light on the text, but a book of this size is not easy to hold and read; the scale benefits the image, not the text. It will take a few more viewings before I am no longer awed by the images to the extent that focusing on the text is impossible, anyway.

Prievew Magic, 1400s-1950s at Taschen.com.
Available for $126 at Amazon.com, $200 elsewhere.

Liber Novus

For those interested in psychology, archetypes, the occult, or Jung, this rare item is now available. Not only is it available, it's free for download.

Carl Jung's "Liber Novus" aka "The Red Book" is a 205-page manuscript written and illustrated by Jung between approximately 1914 and 1930, which was not published or shown to the public until 2009. Until 2001, his heirs denied scholars access to the book, which he began after a falling-out with Sigmund Freud in 1913. Jung originally titled the manuscript Liber NovusA New Book in Latin), but it was informally known and published as The Red Book. The book is written in (literally meaning calligraphic text and contains many illuminations.

Thanks to justinfinity. Head over to his tumblr for the download link.

BibliOdessey: Bugs

BibliOdessey often has interesting posts, but as a fan of antique natural history books, there recent post really caught my eye. In the post A Bug's Life, they have posted select gorgeous images from three volumes of Insecten-Belustigung {Insect Amusements} by AJ Rösel von Rosenhof. Head over to BibliOdessey to see all of their selects. Be sure to scroll down to the bottom of the post for a link to the entire collection of plates.