Initial for alphabet of Latin capital letters (known as the 'Death Alphabet'): the letter D

During the period he spent in Basel between 1515 and 1532, Hans Holbein the Younger regularly worked on designs for woodcutters and printers. Having likely being given the idea and then commissioned by his friend Hans Lützelburger, a form cutter, Holbein set to work on the design of this figure alphabet, the imagery of which derives from a local Basel tradition known as the ‘dance of death’. Working within the limited confines of a strictly defined square format, Holbein created roman type letters that practically fill the available space. The letters are distinctly placed against backgrounds containing dense, dramatic scenes. The alphabet was to see regular service. As well as sample sheets which provided demonstrations of each individual woodblock, many large sheets have survived in which the letters have been assembled to create prints of Reformation-era Biblical quotations in Latin and German. The juxtaposition of text and image serves to illustrate the eternal nature of the word of God in contrast to the transience of human existence.