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Category: Manuscript and Letterpress (Hand Press)

Skeleton riding an ox emerging from the forest with an army of skeletons behind. A group of men cower at the edge of the forest with every sign of defeat, and one man has already fallen to the ground.

The Shimmering Skeleton Rides an Ox, an Illuminated Nightmare in Manuscript 93

Posted by: Marianna Stell

Likely created in Tours in the 1470s in a workshop influenced by the French painter and manuscript illuminator, Jean Fouquet (c. 1420 - 1480), a Book of Hours in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division at the Library of Congress reminds us that Halloween is just around the corner.

Image of a lion with small objects and figures.

In Your Mind’s Eye: Strange Mental Architecture to Help You Remember

Posted by: Marianna Stell

Memory training was an important part of education in the Middle Ages. Borrowing from classical sources, medieval techniques offered elaborate and creative methods for memorizing lengthy works and speeches. The blockbook Ars memorandi, likely printed in Germany around 1470, offers a surprising lesson for those interested in the history of graphic design or mnemonic theory.