Fraktur is a highly artistic and elaborate illuminated folk art created by the Pennsylvania Dutch, named after the

Fraktur Fraktur () is a calligraphic hand of the Latin alphabet and any of several blackletter typefaces derived from this hand. The blackletter lines are broken up; that is, their forms contain many angles when compared to the curves of the Antiqu ...

script associated with it. Most Fraktur were created between 1740 and 1860. Fraktur drawings were executed in ink and/or watercolors and are found in a wide variety of forms: the ''Vorschriften'' (writing samples), the ''Taufscheine'' (birth and baptismal certificates), marriage and house blessings, book plates, and floral and figurative scenes. The earlier Fraktur were executed entirely by hand, while printed text became increasingly common in later examples. Common artistic motifs in Fraktur include birds (

distelfink A distelfink is a stylized goldfinch, probably based on the European variety. It frequently appears in Pennsylvania Dutch folk art. It represents happiness and good fortune and the Pennsylvania German people, and is a common theme in hex signs ...

s), hearts, and tulips, as well as blackletter (

) and italic calligraphy. John Bieber chest 1789 Barnes Foundation 2

Many major American museums, including the

American Folk Art Museum The American Folk Art Museum is an art museum in the Upper West Side of Manhattan, at 2, Lincoln Square, Columbus Avenue at 66th Street. It is the premier institution devoted to the aesthetic appreciation of folk art and creative expressions of ...

the Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the

Winterthur Museum Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library is an American estate and museum in Winterthur, Delaware. Pronounced “winter-tour," Winterthur houses one of the richest collections of Americana in the United States. The museum and estate were the home o ...

have Fraktur in their collections. Important Fraktur have been sold by major American auction houses and antique dealers for prices in excess of $100,000. The definitive text on Fraktur is widely considered to be ''The Fraktur-Writings or Illuminated Manuscripts of the Pennsylvania Germans'', written by Dr. Donald A. Shelley and published by the Pennsylvania German Society in 1961. In late 2004, the majority of Dr. Shelley's Fraktur collection was sold at public

auction An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition ex ...

at Pook & Pook, Inc. in Downingtown, Pennsylvania, for $913,448.

Notable artists

Notable fraktur artists within the Pennsylvania German community include: *

Christian Alsdorff Christian Alsdorff (died 1838) was an American Fraktur artist. Nothing is known of Alsdorff's origins, and no record of his birth has been discovered. For many years he was a schoolmaster; his name appeared in a history of Lancaster County, Penns ...

* Johannes Bard * Samuel Bentz * Martin Brechall * George Peter Deisert * George Heinrich Engellhard *

Johann Adam Eyer Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name ''Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...

* Johann Conrad Gilbert * Samuel Gottschall *

Johann Jacob Friedrich Krebs Johann Jacob Friedrich Krebs, commonly known as Friedrich Krebs (c. 1749–1815) was an American fraktur artist. He was the most prolific of the Pennsylvania German fraktur artists. Born in Zierenberg, Hesse, Krebs was one of the Hessians who ...

* Christian Mertel * Daniel Otto * Johann Henrich Otto *

Daniel Peterman Daniel Peterman (1797-1871) was an American fraktur artist. A third-generation American, Peterman was a native of Shrewsbury Township, York County, Pennsylvania, where he died. A member of the Reformed Church, he was a schoolmaster in that tra ...

* Francis Charles Portzline * Daniel Schumacher * Johannes Ernst Spangenberg * Christian Strenge *

John Van Minian John Van Minian (active 1791-1835) was an American fraktur artist. Little information about Van Minian is known, and he remains an obscure figure despite continued efforts to develop a biography for him. He was initially identified by his signatu ...

Other artists of note include

Jacob Strickler Jacob Strickler (1770–June 24, 1842) was an American fraktur artist. Strickler was born in the community of Massanutten, Virginia, in a portion of Shenandoah County which later became part of Page County. He was descended from the company of M ...

, from the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, and Anna Weber, an

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

resident and one of a few fraktur artists active in Canada. Anonymous artists whose work is recognized include the Cross-Legged Angel Artist, the Ehre Vater Artist, and the Sussel-Washington Artist. Stylistically related work was produced by Ludwig Denig.

External links

ExplorePaHistory.com

Fraktur and related resources

''To the Latest Posterity'', the most recent book published by the Pennsylvania German Society on the Fraktur tradition.
Pennsylvania German Arts and Antiques: News and Commentary by Clarke Hess

* ttp://libwww.freelibrary.org/fraktur/ Free Library of Philadelphia - Fraktur - Digital Collectionsbr>Several digitized books on Pennsylvania Dutch arts and crafts, design, and prints
from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries {{Authority control Blackletter Pennsylvania culture Illuminated manuscripts American folk art Pennsylvania German culture

Notable artists

See also

Further reading

External links