h is for dog

digital image courtesy of the getty's open content program

Circa 1591-96 in Vienna, the illuminator Joris Hoefnagel selected a roughly 6.5 x 5" piece of blank parchment, ink, watercolor, and gold and silver paint.  This is what he made that day (days?  How long did this take him, I wonder?).  It's "A Guide for Constructing the Letters H and I," so it's a template.  

They certainly do not make templates like they used to.

I like to think "H" is for hund, German/Austrian for dog, and a perfect excuse to pop the pretty spaniel into the mix.  Here is a better look at the dog, and you can see how sweetfaced and happy he looks.  If Hoefnagel wasn't an artist with a kind nature, I'm badly fooled.

similar courtesy of the getty