A01=Andrea van Leerdam
Author_Andrea van Leerdam
Category=AK
early modern print culture
early modern prints
eq_art-fashion-photography
eq_bestseller
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
history of books
history of knowledge
history of reading
illustrated medical-astrological books analysis
information design history
knowledge visualisation techniques
medical illustration history
reader engagement studies
vernacular scientific texts
woodcuts
Product details
- ISBN 9781041190875
- Weight: 940g
- Dimensions: 174 x 246mm
- Publication Date: 01 Dec 2025
- Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd
- Publication City/Country: GB
- Product Form: Paperback
Secure
checkout
Fast Shipping
Easy returns
In the first half of the sixteenth century, the Low Countries saw the rise of a lively market for practical and instructive books that targeted non-specialist readers. This study shows how woodcuts in vernacular books on medicine and astrology fulfilled important rhetorical functions in knowledge communication. These images guided readers’ perceptions of the organisation, visualisation, and reliability of knowledge. Andrea van Leerdam uncovers the assumptions and intentions of book producers to which images testify, and shows how actual readers engaged with these illustrated books. Drawing on insights from the field of information design studies, she scrutinises the books’ material characteristics, including their lay-outs and traces of use, to shed light on the habits and interests of early modern readers. She situates these works in a culture where medicine and astrology were closely interwoven in daily life and where both book producers and readers were exploring the potential of images.
Andrea van Leerdam is curator of rare books at Utrecht University Library. She holds a PhD in book history from the same university. She also worked for ten years as a humanities communications advisor.
