Winter

The cultivation and appreciation of ornamental calligraphy has a long history in the Netherlands. Indeed, some of the most elaborate books published in seventeenth-century Holland were, essentially, showcases for beautiful script that had been translated into engraving. That tradition continued into the eighteenth century, and this print, from a set of four ornmental panels, each representing a season of the year, ranks among the most elaborate and playful pieces of printed calligraphy from the whole century. In an explanatory text that accompanies the prints, the calligrapher, Adrianus Doesjan, explains that he has carefully created a style of lettering for each season that best conveys its character, and has filled the decorative roundels and cartouches with images and evocations of the pleasures of that season. The scenes are highly specific, and include accurate depictions of famous and familiar sites in and around the city of Amsterdam.