The History of Baskerville

Fact File

• created: 1757
• designed by: John Baskerville
• country of origin: England

• it was cut into metal for use in printing presses by John Handy
• made in the heart of the Age of enlightenment
  • created at a time of transition in society between the ornateness and asymmetry of the Rococo to Neo-Classicism.
  • emerged at a time of vast scientific discovery and advancement
• https://dmcwo.github.io/dmcwo/blog/visiting-baskerville/ describes this font as a bridge between these two eras- pre and post enlightenment and goes into the symbolism of the font’s ampersand character and how it represents this bridge between classicism and modernity - this could be something extremely interesting to play with in my final font specimen
• This font was also the stepping stone from older typefaces such as Caslon, to newer fonts such as Didot
  • I think it is rather interesting the profound impact society, culture and historical events had on fonts which emerged in popularity.
• The goal was to make the typeface of Caslon more legible. This era was consumed in readability and accessibility of fonts.
• When first released, many people complained the font was ‘too stark’, which is interesting when you compare it to the starkness of the modern fonts today.

Type Styles