Wilhelm and Alexander von Humboldt were explorers, adventurers, researchers, and inventors, as well as humanists and educational reformers. They dedicated their lives to science and endeavored to manage and share their accumulated knowledge. Throughout the development of the catalogue, the question arose as to how they should be remembered: as figures of the past or of the future?

Objects, images, and texts in the catalogue are printed in black and white to give them the same emphasis. The yellow color contrasts with this. This combination creates the sober and objective aesthetic of a modern scientific journal. This aura is supported by the Times Now font, which creates a 'rainbow of grey tones on screen and paper’. It is the only font used; a constant alternation of large and small point sizes and the use of italics draw the reader into the text.