Prelo Prints: Aesop Fables

Prelo Prints is a project born from a love for letterpress and all forms of early print. Predominantly focusing on 15th-century printing techniques and materials, using their wooden one-pull press (an interpretation of what a late 15th-century printing press might have looked and worked) they print reproductions of incunables, broadsides, and iconography.

The first book printed on their wooden press was an edition of the popular Aesop Fables, with a selection of the fables composed with moveable type, and illustrations in woodcut. The Aesop Fables had more than 150 separate editions in the second half of the 15th century, in different European languages. Prelo’s first edition is based on the Vita et Fabulae from 1479, translated from Latin into German by Heinrich Steinhöwel.

The text is set in Nürnberger Schwabacher 16pt, with the woodcut initials for each chapter cut from cherry wood, and the woodcut illustrations in lime wood. Their version was printed in a limited edition of 27 copies, on archival paper with 48 pages, and two different options for the binding: leather and parchment. 

“This project started very smoothly, almost naturally, although I didn’t have much experience with setting type by hand… or printing a book in letterpress to begin with. As a graphic designer I’ve made books in the past (layout and graphic design), but letterpress printing has so many other challenges. Over the course of seven months I learnt loads, improved a lot, and most importantly, had so much fun getting my hands dirty on the job!”

www.preloprints.com
@preloprints

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