Initial C c. 16th century

Curator: Here we have an initial, the letter C, author unknown, from the collections of the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: It feels quite compressed, almost claustrophobic with that densely packed foliage. You can almost feel the pressure of the printing press on the page. Curator: Exactly. The anonymous creator would have been under pressure, churning these out efficiently. Each impression, each mark, reveals the labor of production within the context of early print culture. Editor: I'm also thinking about the way this C might have been used, the content and culture it would have framed. What kind of text needed a decorative 'C'? Curator: Excellent question! It’s a tiny fragment, yet it opens up a huge vista on production, consumption, and cultural history. Editor: Indeed, from a single initial, we glimpse the vast landscape of early modern literacy and artistry.