Typographorum Emblemata

Hubert Meeus

From Nameplate to Emblem. The Evolution of the Printer’s Device in the Southern Low Countries up to 1600

A printed book has two creators, the author, who writes the text, and the printer or publisher, who takes care of the production and distribution. In the early centuries of printing, the printer usually was also publisher and bookseller. Just like scribes, the first printers put their name and address at the end of the work in the colophon. Towards the end of the fifteenth century, the custom to add a title page was gradually established. The author’s name was usually quite prominent on the title page; the printer’s name was mentioned in the imprint at the bottom of the page in small type. The information in the imprint was limited ...