Featured on PDR in the collection 16th-Century Ornament Prints

A collection of highly elaborate ornament prints, mostly in the grotesque style, from the collection of the Rijksmuseum. On the one hand, prints such as these had a functional value, serving as inspiration for craftsmen, such as goldsmiths or carpenters, whose adorning of objects and buildings with ornate designs was in much demand at the time. On the other hand, they are stunning pieces of artwork in their own right, twisting as they do traditional motifs from Roman art and architecture into truly surreal scenes, teeming with curious detail, which almost seem to exist apart from space and time.