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Here begynneth the legende named in Latyn Legenda aurea, : that is to say in Englysshe the Golden legende : for lyke as passeth golde in valewe al other metallys, soo thys legende excedeth all other bokes

Jacobus, de Voragine, approximately 1229-1298 · [Westminster : Wynkyn de Worde] · 10 pictures

This is a 1493 English printing of the Golden Legend, a collection of saints' lives compiled by Jacobus de Voragine and printed at Westminster by Wynkyn de Worde for devout lay readers. The pages carry black-letter text opened by large decorated initials, and one shows the Crucifixion with mourners at its foot. A designer might take from them the dense blackletter setting, ornamental woodcut capitals with foliage and figures inside, and the stark outline woodcut style.

Saints -- Legends · Imprint 1493

Internet Archive · John Carter Brown Library · Public domain · More from this library