Renaissance!

After laboriously toiling over this piece for a few hours I have developed newfound respect for the monks and scribes who lovingly designed and produced these meticulously intricate borders/letters back in the day. That being said, there's something very special about hand-rendering these sorts of designs, especially without the comfort of the "undo" button.

The function of my renaissance page layout would probably be for some sort of storybook, as the clovers in the border are meant to hold miniature illustrations. Seeing as it's not too intricate or extravagant, I wouldn't think that it would be used as a religious text.

I was inspired by the title page for the renaissance book "Orontii Quadrans Astrolabicus Omnibus" (a mathematical textbook, oddly enough) which I found very unique. I fell in love with the detailed linework and the movement of the Celtic cord that weaves in and out of the border. The author of the book, Oronce Finé, might also be the illustrator of this page, although sources are unsure.

I found the book here: http://www.fromoldbooks.org/Butsch-RenaissanceOrnament-VolII/pages/006-celtic-knotwork-border/#details

The drop cap is in a style that is definitively of the Renaissance, and the border design is an interpretation of a work that is, too, from the Renaissance.

Although the original text I used as inspiration for this design was a mathematics textbook, meaning it was most likely for wealthy scholars, or those who had enough money to attend university, the design I have created would most likely be for the middle class, used in an anthology of folktales or possibly even a hymnal.