Incollect Magazine - Issue 3

Antiques & Fine Art 123 2022 Rediscovering Fraktur Artist & Schoolmaster Samuel Bentz by Lisa Minardi Fig. 1 : Bookplate made for Esther Landis, signed by Samuel Bentz (1792–1850), Lancaster County, Pa., 1826. Watercolor and ink on wove paper. H. 6½ x W. 3½ inches. Collection of Historic Trappe (2020.016.0011). Photo by Michael E. Myers. F irst identified in 1986, the fraktur artist and schoolmaster Samuel Bentz produced a large, diverse, and individualized body of work in a distinctive style unlike any of his contemporary fraktur artists. Previous research has focused mainly on documenting Bentz’s work and his career as a schoolmaster. 1 New research into the recipients of his fraktur offers a new perspective on the close-knit world of Bentz’s family, friends, and neighbors in rural Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The following examination of six fraktur signed by or attributable to Samuel Bentz—three owned by Historic Trappe’s Center for Pennsylvania German Studies and three by the Dietrich American Foundation—offers a model for new directions in Pennsylvania German studies. Bookplate Made for Esther Landis This bookplate, made for Esther Landis and recently donated to Historic Trappe, is the basis for all attributions to Samuel Bentz (Fig. 1). It is signed in the lower right corner in German script: “Geschrieben von S m Bentz” (written by Samuel Bentz); the date of April 13, 1826, appears under Landis’ name. Additionally, her initials, “EL,” are inscribed in black at the base of the urn. Prior to this bookplate’s discovery in 1986, Bentz was known by the nickname of the “Mount Pleasant Artist.” The decorative elements seen here are now identified as the hallmarks of Bentz’s work, including the use of bold lettering, urns with striped decoration, and delicate flowers.