Arthur Baker's Copybook of Renaissance calligraphy (Mercator's Italic hand) / Arthur Baker; introduction by William Hogarth

A copybook of Renaissance calligraphy based on the work of Gerhardus Mercator. Includes an introduction by William Hogarth.

"Gerhardus Mercator (latinized form of Gerhard Kremer), who lived 1512-1594, was the greatest of the Renaissance geographers, best known for the map projection that bears his name. It is less commonly known that he was also a fine calligrapher -- the Flemish peer of such Italian masters as Arrighi, Palatino, Cresci and Tagliente.

"Mercator particularly admired the humanistic cursive style of writing, with its added swashes, for use in lettering the place names and legends on his maps. In 1540, he authored a writing manual devoted to this style -- the 'Literarum Latinarum, published at Louvain, Belgium. The title page referred to the creation of 'those letters called Italic or cursive.'" -- back cover