Title
Stenciled choir leaf.
Coverage
Ilbenstadt, Germany,
Date
ca. 1725.
Description
This choir leaf was stenciled by hand letter by letter. Stencils were commonly used during the 17th and 18th centuries to produce large liturgical books as well as other items, such as playing cards. The use of a stencil is indicated by the presence of broken strokes around the bowls of letters (such as a, b, d, and o), caused by the need for the stencil to have bridges to prevent fully enclosed shapes from falling out. Another indication of the use of stencils is the inconsistent baseline of the letters, caused by the imperfect lining up of successive stencils.
Source
From the collection of Rare Book School