Esemplario di lavori, page 9 (verso)

Art Historical Context

Nicolò Zoppino’s *Esemplario lavori* (Sampler of), published in August1529, is a rare early pattern book whose woodcut designs served as practical guides for embroidery lace, and textile ornament This page, the of folio 9, displays intricate motifs rendered in crisp black lines, typical of the wood technique that allowed detailed patterns to be reproduced affordably for a growing audience of needleworkers. Now bound in modern vellum with its pages inlaid for preservation, the volume belongs to the Metropolitan Museum’s collection of prints and ornament books. In the early sixteenth century, such pattern books played an important role in spreading Renaissance design across Italy and beyond. Printer-publishers like Zopp catered to both professional artisans and educated women who decorated household linens and clothing fashionable motifs drawn from classical and contemporary sources. The clear, repeatable woodcut images made complex geometric and floral designs accessible, helping to elevate domestic needlework to an art form that reflected the period’s taste for symmetry and elegance. Acquired by the museum through the Rogers Fund in 1921, this page offers today’s visitors a direct glimpse into how printed ornament traveled from the press into everyday life, linking the worlds of fine art and craft during the Renaissance.

About the Artist

Nicolò Zoppino · 1478–1544

Nicolò Zoppino was an Italian printer and publisher active in Venice and other Italian cities during the first half of the sixteenth century, occupying an important place in the history of early printing and book illustration. Born around 1478, he worked during the golden age of Venetian printing, a period when the city was the dominant center of book production in Europe and publishers competed t...