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he Model Book of Giovannino de Grassi and his school is the most well-known and most precious manuscript in the library "Angelo Mai" in Bergamo and is generally regarded as the most important example of late Gothic Italian art. Produced towards the end of the 14th century at the Court of the Viscount of Milan, the so called Model Book contains 77 drawings and 24 letters the alphabet of the most supreme quality on 31 parchment pages of unequal size (227 X 170 mm to 260 X 186 mm).

The master who produced this perfect manuscript is Giovannino de Grassi. He was a genuine universal-artist: in addition to his occupation as a designer and sculptor he was also Cathedral Master of the magnificent Milan Cathedral. In spite of recent research into the curriculum vitae of Giovannino de Grassi up until May 1389 his life is a mystery, until his name appears on the pay register during the construction of the Milan Cathedral as a painter. He was probably born between the years 1355 and 1360 and that his training probably took place at the Court of the Viscount in Milan and Pavia. At the height of his creativity Giovannino de Grassi made contact with the most renowned architects of the middle European Gothic cathedrals, Heinrich Parler and Ulrich von Einsingen. This contact strengthened his position in Lombardy and he was contracted to prepare designs along with his other artistic responsibilities.

His proficiency and the quality of his artistic achievement followed the grand style being used in Bohemia, the noted "points style" of Parlers. At this time, in addition to the work he was performing on the Milan Cathedral he produced a manuscript in the late gothic Italian style that would become known as: The Model Book of Giovannino de Grassi.

Model Books of this type were an indispensable aid in every artists workshop. In the book the elements of artistic adornment were illustrated and similarly calligraphic initials and the representations of animals. Few artists in the Middle Ages ever had the opportunity to view animals such as leopards, gazelles or even lions in their natural environment.

To enable an artist to paint these animals in a realistic form it was essential for the artist to have in his possession a Model Book which showed the animals in as realistic as possible art works. The paramount artistic meaning as well as the influence of the Model Books on the style and development of art therefore meant that Model Books from a very early date were coveted collector items. Undoubtedly the most well-known and most significant Model Books of this period is the one produced by Giovannino de Grassi - especially because of the uniqueness of his illustrations.

Several components make the Model Book of Giovannino de Grassi a landmark in the history of art. From his studio beside the Milan Cathedral through his European orientation and the obvious stylistic approach he was able to influence other centres of courtly art such as Bohemia or the Northern France and Flemish areas.

Grassis art works in the 15th Century were in many European museums. The activities of Grassis as managing engineer of the Milan Cathedral presumably also enabled him to create some of the superb cathedral windows. As a designer, planner and sculptor in the last decade of the 14th Century places him as a versatile and skilful artist. He was highly influential in the style directions of contemporary European art and simultaneously revived Italian art immediately before the radical changes brought about by the Renaissance.

The Model Book of Giovannino de Grassi is now available from Faksimile Verlag Luzern who have produced a volume preserving all the qualities of the original.

All 62 pages produced at the end of the 14th Century are reproduced in facsimile in the original format of 227 x of 170 mm to 260 x of 186 mm. All 77 drawings and the 24 letters of the alphabet are reproduced exactly as the original. All the pages in the facsimile have had their edges trimmed individually to match the original. The binding is an exact replica of the original. A protective box, bound in the finest velours provides protection for the Model Book. The offering consists of the facsimile volume with a velours box and a commentary volume.

The edition is limited to 999 copies world-wide. The German language scholarly commentary volume studies each of the miniatures and minutely analyses the magnificent Gothic alphabet. The volume looks at the artist and highlights how his charisma influenced the art of the 15th and 16th Centuries.

The Commentary volume has contributions from Orazio Bravi, Director of the Library "Angelo Mai", in Bergamo, Maria Grazia Recanati of the Accademia Carrara, as well as of Maria Grazia Vaccari and Letizia Montalbano.