Initial (Initial Capital)

An initial (initial capital, drop cap) is an enlarged, artistically decorated opening letter of a text, chapter, or paragraph in a manuscript or early printed book. The initial performed not only a decorative but also a structural-navigational function: it marked the beginning of a new sense-block, easing orientation in the text (for early books had no paragraph division or punctuation in the modern sense). By character of decoration, one distinguishes ornamental initials (with plant, geometric, or 'zoomorphic' interlace), historiated ones (with a narrative image inside the letter), and calligraphic ones. Initials were executed in bright paints and gold, often matching the headpieces. The art of the initial flourished in the medieval manuscript book; the Old Rus' book has fine examples of 'teratological' (zoomorphic) initial ornament. With the advent of printing, initials were reproduced by woodcut engraving; ornate initials adorned Ukrainian old prints of the 16th–18th centuries, notably the Lavra editions.