Book History: E is for Emblem Book

An emblem book was a book of symbols or pictures, usually with accompanying prose or poetry that was popular beginning in the 1500s in Italy. Popular across Western Europe by the 1700s, these picture books were based on medieval allegories or bestiaries.  Lovers might exchange emblem books of love symbols, and religious symbols were another popular choice.  These books were so popular that they were often plagiarized or reprinted with slight changes in the pictures or text.  According to the English Emblem Book Project, the images were very complex and were meant to "arrest" the reader inviting him into the text.  They were complex images, intended to be studied by the reader.  You can look at digitized versions of some of these books at the English Emblem Book Project, link below.

Emblem Book Page from Philip Ayres:  Emblemata amatoria, Emblemes d'amour en quatre langue

at the English Emblem Book Project at Penn State University Libraries