Culture
Words by Dan Reynolds
Caractères Elzéviriens de la Fonderie J.-V. EON, 1884
Here is an early broadsheet format specimen from the French type foundry Eon. Printed in 1884, it is a proof of various Elzevirian typefaces, which were undergoing many revival processes at this period.
Here is an early broadsheet format specimen from the French type foundry Eon. Printed in 1884, it is a proof of various Elzevirian typefaces, which were undergoing many revival processes at this period.
While the XIXth century was mostly an era of Neo-classicism in type, many editorial printers resisted this influence. Even though one can recognize the Elzevirian type style in this specimen, the XIXth century elaborated a vue d’esprit of what Renaissance type was : draughtsmen reinterpreted their idea of Elzevirian typefaces or rather, tried to create what they imagined was the style of the Renaissance. Therefore, in those pages we see different gimmicks freom several centuries ago, such as ornaments, dropped capitals, banners, etc., that people considered being reminiscent of Renaissance typography.
In this context, broadsheets had an economical interest: such posters were easy to produce, barely needed any production except for folding, and thus, could be distributed to clients and prospects without much investment. It is difficult to judge if this format was popular at the time, as few of them survived: these objects didn’t bear much formal value, so even if they would have been popular, it is possible that they were disposed of.
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