Schön Neues Modelbuch (Page 5 recto)
Medium
Woodcut (facsimile)
Dimensions
Overall: 6 1/8 x 7 13/16 in. (15.5 x 19.8 cm)
Classification
Books|Prints|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1920
Accession Number
20.16(5r)
Art Historical Context
This 1597 woodcut from *Schön Neues Modelbuch* (Beautiful New Model Book) represents the vibrant tradition of printed pattern books that flourished in late Renaissance Europe. Created by Johann Sibmacher and published by Balthasar Caymox, the page belongs to a practical guide offering intricate designs for embroidery, lace, and other decorative needlework. As a facsimile reproduction, it preserves the crisp lines and repeatable motifs that allowed artisans across regions to copy and adapt fashionable patterns for clothing, household linens, and furnishings. Woodcut printing proved ideal for s...
About the Artist
Johann Sibmacher|Balthasar Caymox · 1590–1611
Johann Sibmacher (c. 1561–1611), also rendered as Johann Ambrosius Siebmacher, was a German copperplate engraver, etcher, and publisher based in Nuremberg whose contributions to heraldic art and decorative pattern design left a legacy that outlasted him by centuries. Active from around 1590 until his death in 1611, Sibmacher worked at the heart of Nuremberg's flourishing book and print trade, a ci...