Anna Rügerin

Anna Rügerin is considered to be the first female typographer to inscribe her name in the colophon of a book, in the 15th century.[1] In 1484, Rügerin printed two books in the in-folio format, in a press she owned in the city of Augsburg (Germany). Her work appeared less than twenty years after the arrival of the movable-type printing press in that city.

The colophon from Sachsenspiegel: Landrecht, printed in Augsburg by Anna Rügerin, 22 June 1484

The first of Rügerin's known books is an edition of Eike of Repgow's compendium of customary law, the Sachsenspiegel, dated 22 June 1484. The Sachsenspiegel, written in the 13th century, was the first major work of German prose. The catalogue Beschreibung derjenigen bücher welch von erfindung der buchdruckerkunst bis M.d.xx ... gedruckt worden sind by Georg Wolfgang Panzer details some of its characteristics.[2] The colophon of the book says the following:

Hye endet sich der sachsenspiegel mitt ordnung des rechten den der erwirdig in got vater und herr Theodoricus von bockßdorf bischof zu neünburg säliger gecorrigieret hat. Gedruckt und volendt von Anna Rügerin in der keyserlichen stat Augspurg am aftermontag nächst vor Johannis. do man zalt nach Cristi gepurt/M.CCCC.lxxxiiij.jar./

The second book was an edition of the Formulare und deutsch rhetorica, a manual of instructions for the editing of official documents and of letters, printed on 29 July 1484.[1][3]

These books were composed in the Gothic font 1:120G of Johann Schönsperger.[4] The researcher Sheila Edmunds identifies Schönsperger as the brother of Anna Rügerin, as his mother, Barbara Traut Schönsperger, married the printer Johann Bämler as her second husband (probably in 1467 or 1468).[5] This marriage, according to Edmunds, would have produced an extensive familial network devoted to the book trade in Augsburg. Anna Rügerin's husband, Thomas Rüger, jointly published books with Schönsperger in 1481 and 1482.[6] Johann Schönsperger could have helped Anna Rügerin (who had inherited Rüger's press) to make her first printing.[7]

References

  1. 1 2 Boardley, John (15 October 2014). "The first female typographer". I love typography. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
  2. ↑ Panzer, Georg Wolfgang (1788). Grattenauer, E. C., ed. Beschreibung derjenige Bücher welche von Erfindung der Buchdruckerkunst bis M.D.XXVI in deutscher Sprache gedruckt worden sind (in German). pp. 148–149.
  3. ↑ "Formulare und deutsch retorica". Gesamtkatalog der Wiegendrucke – Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin (in German). Retrieved 16 September 2015. Handbuch mit Anleitungen, Materialsammlungen und Beispielen für die Gestaltung von Urkunden und amtlichen Briefen.
  4. ↑ "Anna Rügerin (Augsburg, Offizin 16)". Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin (in German). Retrieved 15 September 2015.
  5. ↑ Edmunds, Sheila (1999). Driver, Martha W., ed. "Anna Rügerin Revealed". Journal of the Early Book Society for the Study of Manuscripts and Printing History. 2: 179-18.
  6. ↑ The Bookworm: An Illustrated Treasury of Old-time Literature. Elliot Stock. 1894. p. 202.
  7. ↑ "Anna Rügerin". Science and its Times – Gale. Retrieved 15 September 2015.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 8/25/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.