The Heart of the Taufschein offers the first in-depth interpretive history of the Taufschein (birth and baptism certificate), the most numerous and, to many because of its genealogical value, the most important type of fraktur. Berks County arguably became the center of Taufschein production in North America. ... In this volume the Earnests, the leading authorities on fraktur, trace the development of the Taufschein beyond Berks County into southeastern Pennsylvania and colonial America as the surge in demand for these works of art on paper followed the successful outcome of the American Revolution. The authors follow the history and expansion of the market from the eighteenth to the twentieth century.--Dust jacket.