Utrecht incunabula

Detail eerste pagina 'Historia Scholastica' van Petrus Comestor, 1473

This digital exhibition gives an overview of the earliest printed books in the town of Utrecht, and possessed by the Utrecht University Library. In the exhibition, these so-called Utrecht incunabula — books from before 1501 printed from individual pieces of cast metal movable type — are arranged chronologically. The different works offer a great insight into the position of the town of Utrecht as the cradle of printing in the Northern Netherlands. All digitized incunabula have an explanation and can be browsed and viewed digitally. It is also possible to download the books as PDF files.

The digital exhibition could be realized thanks to a large subsidy from the K.F. Hein Fonds and the Fentener van Vlissingen Fonds SHV, in the context of the project Vroege Utrechtse drukkers op de kaart, 1450-1800 ('Early Utrecht printers on the map, 1450-1800'). This project also yielded a geographical interface (out of maintenance; version Internet Archive 18 June 2022), visualizing the different locations of the early Utrecht printers and publishers.

Exhibition items (chronologically)

Questions about this digital exhibition?