The two-part volume contains 552 catalogue items of inscriptions that have survived for the old town and the historic cemeteries of Wittenberg. The collection begins with the oldest surviving inscriptions from the 13th century and ends in 1650. About two thirds of all inscriptions from this period have only been copied, i.e. they are not original. Wittenberg's inscriptions can mainly be assigned to three spheres of life: the resurgent residential culture in the late 15th century, the university founded in 1502 and the prosperous burgher town of the early modern period. The first highlight in the 16th century, which is rich in tradition, is the memorial monuments to the Electors Frederick the Wise and John the Steadfast in the castle church, masterly brass reliefs by the Vischer workshop in Nuremberg. A few years later, the painter Lucas Cranach the Younger created outstanding painting epitaphs for the city church. From the middle of the 16th century, the number of surviving memorials to members of the university increased. The extraordinarily extensive and sophisticated Latin inscriptions of the commemorations of the dead illustrate the educational aspirations and the Europe-wide networking of scholars in the early modern period. They also testify to the personal connections of Wittenberg families to the university, which can sometimes be traced over generations. The university was the place of origin of the Reformation, which has left many epigraphic traces. Apart from this major event, others were also reflected in the inscriptions, such as the Turkish Wars and the Thirty Years' War.