Anatomy of Typefaces 1

Rules : Are learnt and should be abided by at all times.
Principles : Can be explored, challenged and questioned.

Type has six categories
they are all representations of the context the typeface was made and some aesthetically effected by the material/ category.

Classic Period- 
pre industrial
(more character easier to define)

Modern Period-
post industrial


Stone 
Originates from the carving made into walls and slates made in the ancient roman era. The typefaces that fit into this category are many serif fonts, the serifs where made accidentally by the way chisel made the mark on the stone, they added the serif to create a more finished and refined letterform.

Sable
Comes from ancient Japan where they began using the material with ink to create letterforms. It was a much more efficient material. It created stoke like lines, which varied slightly in weight. 

Bone
In the form of nib pens, invented around the middle ages used with ink. Dip an nib pens.

Wood
Began when the Gutenberg Press was invented in 1450. And letters could be now set and pressed. Letter Press.  

Lead 
Long after the invention of the wooden press came lead, in the form of type writers and movable type.

Silicone
Has only really been around 30 years when the computer was invented, it has really sparked in the last ten years with new software.

Digital mimics the handmade, but it can also create new. 

Ty-pog-ra-phy
The art/ technique of printing with moveable type.
The composition of printed materials of moveable type.
The appearance, and subject of printed matter.

Brief timeline
1450 Gutenberg Press invented
          Gutenberg Bible

1700- 1850 Industrialisation/ Enlightenment

Present Digital

Anatomy of the Glyph

• Bold
• Light
• Regular

• Weight
• Stroke
• Serif
• Sans - Serif

The term upper case and lower case comes from a printers term where they would store capitals in an upper draw and the other in the lower draw.

1point: 1/72 inches = 25.4/72 mm = 0.3527 mm 

12 points = 1 pica

Point size includes everything from the line of the descenders to the Cap- height/ ascenders.