Fior di virtu hystoriato

Art Historical Context

Created in Pavia on May 7, 1519, by Gianstephano di Carlo da Pavia, *Fior di virtu hystoriato* is a compact printed book measuring just under eight inches tall. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum’s Department of Drawings and Prints, this small volume exemplifies the early-sixteenth-century Italian interest in moral instruction through illustrated texts. Its classification as a book underscores the period’s growing use of print to circulate ethical teachings across a widening audience. The work’s decorative program, hinted at by its tags of animals, men, and trees, suggests lively woodcut or engraved vignettes that would have accompanied lessons on virtue. Such imagery helped readers—often laypeople—visualize abstract moral concepts in familiar natural settings, blending education with visual delight. Acquired through the Harris Brisbane Dick Fund in 1925, the volume preserves a snapshot of Renaissance book culture, where compact formats and narrative pictures made virtuous living accessible beyond monastic or courtly circles.