The printer and the scholar: the making of Daniel Klein's Grammatica Litvanica
The printer and the scholar: the making of Daniel Klein's Grammatica Litvanica

Summary/Abstract: Prominently displayed as the third to sixth line of the title page of Daniel Klein's Grammatica Litvanica, printed in Königsberg, Prussia (now Kaliningrad) in 1653, are the words "Prepared by the Mandate and Authority of the SERENE ELECTOR OF BRANDENBURG", referring to Georg Wilhelm's decree outlining the need for printed works to further the religious instruction of the pagan Lithuanian. Significantly, the title page also contains a quote from Cicero: "Nothing is simultaneously commenced and accomplished". Although the production of this work was directly influenced by the Elector's decree, which in turn was part of the Reformation's emphasis on bringing the word of God to the people, it can also be seen as part of a widespread Renaissance flowering of interest in vernacular tongues.

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