Pennsylvania German fraktur were handwritten documents that recorded births and baptisms in the last half of the 18th century. The birth and baptismal certificates - referred to as Geburts und Taufscheins -- employ fraktur lettering. Fraktur were produced from about 1760 to the early years of the twentieth century, almost always in German. By around 1900, fraktur are frequently found written in English.
Schoolmasters, itinerant artists, and scholars filled in fraktur certificates. These people were highly skilled in producing decorative handwriting. When a writer was finished with his work, he would decorate it with naïve drawings and watercolors of animals, angels, mermaids, flowers, birds, and hearts. The work of the fraktur scribes and artists ranges from downright primitive to quite marvelous.
Fraktur art blends text and decoration, it is close in nature to the medieval illuminated manuscript. While American fraktur may have its roots in European illuminated manuscripts, it is significantly different in one major aspect. American fraktur is used strictly to record family events.
This painting was inspired by two of my favorite illuminated manuscripts depicting the angels announcing the birth of Jesus to the Shepherds in the field.
Schoolmasters, itinerant artists, and scholars filled in fraktur certificates. These people were highly skilled in producing decorative handwriting. When a writer was finished with his work, he would decorate it with naïve drawings and watercolors of animals, angels, mermaids, flowers, birds, and hearts. The work of the fraktur scribes and artists ranges from downright primitive to quite marvelous.
Fraktur art blends text and decoration, it is close in nature to the medieval illuminated manuscript. While American fraktur may have its roots in European illuminated manuscripts, it is significantly different in one major aspect. American fraktur is used strictly to record family events.
This painting was inspired by two of my favorite illuminated manuscripts depicting the angels announcing the birth of Jesus to the Shepherds in the field.
