Grotesque Alphabet of Jan Christian Bierpfaff: Libellus Novus Elementorum Latinorum

The Libellus Novus Elementorum Latinorum is a series of ornate letterform prints blending a grotesque botanical styling with an unusual abstract baroque ornamental form. The prints were designed by Polish goldsmith Jan Christian Bierpfaff (1600-1690), and engraved by Jeremias Falck (1610-1677).
Bierpfaff apprenticed with the Mackensen family of metalworkers in Kraków. The Mackensen clan introduced the Dutch Auricular style of ornament, featuring "Ear-like, or Shell-like" patterns, from which this collection has drawn inspiration from, and which was to become a popular style in competing Polish gold and silver workshops. The design is fluid and whimsical, expressing itself with floral and gargoyle forms dynamically hidden within its letterforms.
This exquisite facsimile is presented as a design resource for artists of all crafts, and admirers of interesting and odd typology and print matter.