A facsimile of Nicholas Jenson's roman type used in Venice circa 1470. The abstracted long "s" (resembling a barless "f") fell out of use centuries later.

Antiqua typefaces are those designed between about 1470 and 1600, specifically those by Nicholas Jenson and the Aldine roman comissioned by Aldus Manutius and cut by Francesco Griffo. Antiqua letterforms were modelled on a synthesis of Roman inscriptional capitals and Carolingian writing. They are also known as Venetian types. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2264x1209, 227 KB)Sample of roman typeface by Nicolas Jenson, from an edition of Laertius, printed in Venice 1475. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2264x1209, 227 KB)Sample of roman typeface by Nicolas Jenson, from an edition of Laertius, printed in Venice 1475. ... Nicolaus Jenson (1420 - 1480) was a French engraver, typographer and printer who did most of his work in Venice. ... Venice (Italian: Venezia, Venetian: Venezsia) is the capital of region Veneto, and has a population of 271,663 (census estimate January 1, 2004). ... An italicized long s used in the word Congress in the United States Bill of Rights. ... For the origin and evolution of fonts, see History of western typography. ... A piece of cast metal type, Garamond style long s / i ligature. ... Aldus Manutius (1449/50 - February 6, 1515), the Latin form of Aldo Manuzio (born Teobaldo Mannucci) was the founder of the Aldine Press. ... Francesco Griffo (? - 1518), also called Francesco da Bologna, was a fifteenth-century Venetian punchcutter. ... A letterform, letter-form or letter form, is a term used especially in typography, paleography, calligraphy and epigraphy to mean a letters shape. ... The Arch of Titus, with an inscription in Roman square capitals Roman square capitals, also called elegant capitals and quadrata, are an ancient Roman form of writing, and the basis for modern capital letters. ... A portrait of Charlemagne by Albrecht Dürer that was painted several centuries after Charlemagnes death. ... Venice (Italian: Venezia, Venetian: Venezsia) is the capital of region Veneto, and has a population of 271,663 (census estimate January 1, 2004). ...

Antiqua's Germanic opposite is blackletter, in which the letter forms are broken or fractured. In 19th- and 20th-century Germany, there was a dispute over whether German should be written in antiqua or the highly-developed Fraktur blackletter. Blackletter in a Latin Bible of AD 1407, on display in Malmesbury Abbey, Wiltshire, England. ... The Antiqua-Fraktur dispute was a typographical dispute in 19th and 20th century Germany. ... The German word Fraktur (pronounced in IPA) refers to a specific blackletter typeface. ...

See also

• Bembo
• History of western typography
• Roman type
• Typography

Bembo was a Monotype “recutting” (in effect a revival and reworking) of type used by Aldus Manutius. ... A piece of cast metal type, Garamond style long s / i ligature. ... Roman type has two separate meanings in typography, both of which refer to the fact that the capital letters of a Roman font have an appearance similar to those used for lettering stone in ancient Rome: Roman type can refer to one of the major families of traditional typefaces as... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

References

• Nesbitt, Alexander The History and Technique of Lettering (c) 1957, Dover Publications, Inc. ISBN 0486204278 , Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number: 57-13116. The Dover edition is an abridged and corrected republication of the work originally published in 1950 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. under the title Lettering: The History and Technique of Lettering as Design.