The Dance of Death

Lutzenberger as to the design or execution of the Lyo

vi, sed quoad fieri potuit, dilucida earundem expositione. Lugduni, sub scuto Coloniensi MDXXXVIII." 4to. They were several times republished with varied titles, and two additional cuts. Prefixed are some highly complimentary Latin ve

1533, or indeed in any of the subsequent editions; but it is certain that Borbonius was at Lyons in 1538, and might then

for the purpose of saving expense, made use of them in this Bible, though with different descriptions, having, in all probability, employed the same engraver on wood as in the Dance of Death, a task to which he had already demonstrated himself to be fully competent. Now, if the Frellons had regarded Holbein as the designer of the "Simulachres et historiees faces de l

them to those in the Dance of Death, as well as in the manner of engraving. The rest are in a bolder and broader style, in a careless but effective manner, corresponding altogether with such designs as are well ascertained to be Holbein's, and of which it would be impossible to produce a single one, that in point of delicacy of outline, or composition, accords with those in the

sitting at table in the Simulachres is intended for Francis I. which, if any one should doubt, let him look upon the miniature of that king, copied at p. 214 in Clarke's "Repertorium bibliographicum," from a drawing in a French MS. belonging to M. Beckford, or at a wood-cut in fo. xcxix b. of "L'histoire de P

the Lyons work. There were, during the middle of the 16th century, several artists equally competent to the undertaking, both as to invention and execution, as is demonstrable, among numerous other instances, from the spurious, but beautiful, Italian copy of the original cuts; from the scarcely distinguishable copies of the Lyons Bible cuts in an edition put forth by John Stelsius at Antwerp, 1561, and from the works of several artists, both designers and wood-engravers,

e of any kind. We must then seek for its meaning as belonging to the engraver, and whose name was, in all probability, Hans Leuczellberger or Lutzenberger, sometimes called Franck. M. de Mechel, the celebrated printseller and engraver at Basle, addressed a letter to M. de Murr, in which he states that on a proof sheet of an alphabet in the library in that city, containing several small figures of a Dance of Death, he had found the above name. M. Brulliot remarks that he had seen some of the letters of this alp

, has written in pencil, the following memorandum: " gravè par Hans (John) Lutzenberger, graveur en patrons à Basle, vivant là au commencement du 16me siecle;" but he has inadvert

Metodica," that Holbein had no concern with the cuts of the Lyons Dance of Death, the engraving of which he decidedly ascribes to Hans Lutzenberger; and, without any reference to the inscription on the proof of one of the alphabets in the library at Basle before-mentioned, which he ha

y few in number, and extremely rare, the fo

a peasant with a flail, a female, &c. to a lighted taper on a candelabrum placed in the middle of the print; on the other side, a group of thirteen or fourteen pers

pillar. In one, the Judgment of Solomon; in the other, Christ and the woman taken i

ting in a court of justice with several spec

ses and a youth, over whom is inscribed OFFEN SVNDER. 2. A pope on a throne delivering some book, perhaps letters of indulgence, to a knee

he left, the letters . Annexed are two tablets, one of which is inscribed HANS LEVCZELLBVRGER FVRMSCHNIDER; on the other is an alphabet. Jansen has also mentione

S has a lighted torch in one hand and a horn in the other; she is accompanied by Cupid. I

i as certainly belonging to this artist.[110] In the index of names, he says, he finds his name thus written

rawing, in strength of character and in skill as to engraving they may be justly pronounced superior to every thing of the kind, and their excellence will probably remain a long time

ich are not of the most delicate nature. They are smaller than the letters in the preceding article, and are p

groups of boys in the most amusing and playful attitudes and employments. The size of the letters is little more than half an

reason to believe that the old printers and type-cutters occasionally used blocks of metal instead of wood for their figured initial letters, and the term formschneider equally applies to those

hem are to be found in many books printed at Zurich, Strasburg, Vienna, Augsburg, Frankfort, &c. and a few even in books printed at London by Waley, Purslowe, Marsh, and Nichol

hneiders, whilst, perhaps, the greatest part of them really belong to the designers, as is undoubtedly the case with respect to Albert Durer, Hans Schaufelin, Jost Amman, Tobias Stimmer, &c. It may be laid down as a rule that there is no certainty as to the marks of engravers, except where they are accompanied with so