ABSTRACT
The market for books around 1650 was very different from the one Cornelis Claesz knew around 1600. Population had increased dramatically, testifying to the tremendous growth the Dutch economy experienced during this time. By the middle of the seventeenth century, the number of booksellers active in the Dutch Republic had increased almost fourfold, and Dutch publishers had become top players in the international book trade. 1 The Republic was not the largest producer in Europe, nor was it the only country in which volume of production increased. What set the book trade in the Republic apart were its growth rates, its scale and scope relative to population size, and the quality of its printing. 2 Dutch books, neither particularly costly nor luxurious, became renowned for their high-quality paper, simple and neat printing, and attractive typography. 3
