Vassar College Digital Library

Albertus Pafraet, 1530 -- Printer's Mark

Image
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Date
1530
Description
Main (Thompson) Library location: South wing -- Second window. Albertus Pafraet (c.14-- – c. 155-) was born in Deventer to Richard Pafraet, one of the first printers in the city. By 1511 he took over his father's press and continued to work on similar types of commissions, mainly religious texts and collections of contemporary literature. Among the writers and theologians whose work Pafraet printed regularly are Johannes Sylvanus, David Joris, Johannes Murmellius, and Battista Spagnoli. Notably, he printed several volumes of Virgil's Aeneid in 1524. Until his retirement in approximately 1551, Pafraet produced more than three hundred books.This mark is a direct adaptation of the mark employed by Pafraet's father. To the original rectangular design, forming directionally opposite two enclosures, Pafraet added his initials, A.P. The full version of Pafraet's own device showed this mark on a shield presented by two rearing lions in a dense thicket; beneath this scene is a scroll containing the printer's name.
Note
Photograph by Amy Laughlin

This project was created by Katherine Durr (VC '15) as part of the Ford Scholar program under the supervision of Professor Ron Patkus in Summer 2013.

Subject (Corporate Body)
Subject (Topical)
Subject (Geographic)
Genre
Details
Identifier
vassar:32708
Local Identifier
pmarks_photo_SE1_007
Extent
1 item
Type
Rights
These materials are made available for research and educational purposes. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine the copyright status of materials in the Vassar College Digital Library.
Additional Media
"The Mark of the Renaissance Printer" blog post by Katherine Durr, 2013 Vassar Ford Scholar: https://library.vassar.edu/blog/The-Mark-of-the-Renaissance-Printer