Buchinger, Matthias | An extraordinarily diminutive example of Buchinger's artistry

Buchinger, Matthias

Fine autograph micro-calligraphic Ten Commandments, with the Apostles' Creed and the Lord's Prayer signed ("Matthew Buchinger")

Manuscript on vellum (109 x 81 mm), Dublin, 30 December 1720. Tipped to a mat board and matted.

An extraordinarily diminutive example of Buchinger's artistry. Written at the beginning of Buchinger's residency in Ireland, the present manuscript transcribes the texts of the Decalogue, the Apostles' Creed, and the Lord's Prayer within an elaborate architectonic frame incorporating full-figure representations of Moses and Aaron, the whole surmounted by brilliant sky of sunbeams and cherubim; Buchinger even included the Hebrew (YHWH) and Greek (THEOS) names of God—in Hebrew and Greek lettering. The manuscript is signed with his standard formula. 

Ricky Jay noted that "high-powered magnification [reveals] scoring, underlining in graphite, and a pin-prick (perhaps for the use of a tool, likely a compass to aid in his drawing)" (MB, pp. 101–103). 

A very fine example of one of Buchinger's favorite compositions, in the finest possible condition.

REFERENCE:

Exemplars, p. 69; MB, fig. 45; Wordplay 60