The Dream of Poliphilus: Just the Woodcuts

Author:

Publisher: Cutt Press (2023)

Just the Woodcuts, a colouring book based on the woodcuts from one of the first illustrated printed books, Hypnerotomachia Poliphili (The Dream of Poliphilus).

On the surface it appears to be a kind of romance, yet one preoccupied with lengthy descriptions of architecture. Hypnerotomachia Poliphili — or, Poliphilo’s Strife of Love in a Dream — was published by the Venetian press of Aldus Manutius in 1499. Structured as a dream within a dream, the narrative weaves together mythological references to construct a universe filled with ruinous landscapes and orgiastic celebrations, visualized with nearly two hundred woodcut illustrations.

This colouring book is reprinted in burgundy riso ink on munken crème paper from a reproduction made in 1893 for the department of science and art in photo-lithography in Leipzig.

In the original, the illustrations are integrated into the main text and contain aspects of film, comics, and storyboarding, all of which make it even more interesting that it is one of the most unreadable books ever published.