GRAPHIC DESIGN HISTORY / MEDIEVAL SCRIPTS i / xxxix
Medieval Scripts
1 Overview 3
2 Gothic Architecture 19
3 Late Medieval Manuscripts 25
4 Blackletter 29
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1,000 CE – PRESENT Overview Blackletter—a collection of medieval scripts— has existed in numerous forms for over a thousand years and still remains in use today.
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Blackletter
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Blackletter
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Blackletter
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Blackletter
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Blackletter
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Blackletter
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1990 CE Old English Font • Designed by Monotype Corporation • A mash-up of historic styles • Modern interpretation of blackletter script • Includes anachronistic glyphs: Arabic numerals, ampersand (instead of et symbol) and punctuation
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500–1,100 CE Old English Language • Anglo-Saxon Language • Spoken in England • Spoken from 500–1,100 CE • Written in uncials, and later in minuscule • Beowolf (written between 975 and 1025 CE)
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300–700 CE The Visigoths • Lived in present day Spain and Portugal • Tribes that flourished and spread throughout the late Roman Empire in Late Antiquity • Invaded Italy in 410 CE
© Kevin Woodland, 2020 Top: Iglesia de San Pedro de la Nave, 691 CE GRAPHIC DESIGN HISTORY / MEDIEVAL SCRIPTS
1,100 – 1,500 CE Gothic Architecture Primary artistic expression of the Middle Ages, occurring roughly 1,100 – 1,500 CE. GRAPHIC DESIGN HISTORY / MEDIEVAL SCRIPTS / Gothic Architecture 20 / 39
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1,100 – 1,500 CE The Gothic Style • Medieval architectural style, primarily in France • Rib vaults, flying buttresses, elongated forms • Tall and upright compared to lower, flatter Romanesque architecture
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500–1,500 CE Late Medieval Manuscripts Towards the end of the Medieval period, scribes bring manuscript design to new levels of visual complexity. GRAPHIC DESIGN HISTORY / MEDIEVAL SCRIPTS / Late Medieval Manuscripts 26 / 39
500–1,500 CE Illuminated Manuscripts • Heavily illustrated • Illuminations and rubrications • Gold leaf, tempera, ink • Parchment • Intended to glorifying the word of God
© Kevin Woodland, 2020 Unknown Scribe, Initial B: David Playing the Harp for Saul and David and Goliath, Tempera colors, gold leaf, and ink on parchment, mid-1200s GRAPHIC DESIGN HISTORY / MEDIEVAL SCRIPTS / Late Medieval Manuscripts 27 / 39
© Kevin Woodland, 2020 The Hours of Catherine of Cleves, The Netherlands, Utrecht, 1440 CE GRAPHIC DESIGN HISTORY / MEDIEVAL SCRIPTS / Late Medieval Manuscripts 28 / 39
© Kevin Woodland, 2020 The Hours of Catherine of Cleves, The Netherlands, Utrecht, 1440 CE GRAPHIC DESIGN HISTORY / MEDIEVAL SCRIPTS
1,000–1,500 CE Blackletter Medieval scribes search for a new style of lettering to mirror the emerging gothic architectural style. GRAPHIC DESIGN HISTORY / MEDIEVAL SCRIPTS / Blackletter 30 / 39
© Kevin Woodland, 2020 Trajan GRAPHIC DESIGN HISTORY / RusticMEDIEVAL SCRIPTS / Blackletter 31 / 39 TrajanGreek Uncial Monumental Capitals TrajanRusticUncial250 BCE Greek Uncial TrajanHalf-UncialRusticGreek100 CE Uncial Square Capitals TrajanRusticUncialVisigothicGreek0 CE Uncial Rustic Capitals Half-UncialRusticLuxeuilUncialGreek100 CE Uncial Uncial Half-UncialUncialVisigothicGreekBeneventan300 CE Uncial Half-Uncial Half-UncialLuxeuilUncialVisigothicCarolingian500 CE Insular Script Half-UncialLuxeuilVisigothicBeneventanInsular600 CE Carolingian Miniscule LuxeuilVisigothicProtogothicBeneventanCarolingian750 CE Textura LuxeuilBeneventanInsularTextualisCarolingian1,000–1,600 CE quadrata Rotunda ProtogothicBeneventanFrakturInsularCarolingian1,100–1,600 CE Bastarda ProtogothicInsularTextualisCarolingianHumanist1,300–1,500 CE quadrata abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz Schwabacher ProtogothicFrakturInsularTimesTextualis1,300–1,400 CE quadrata Fraktur ProtogothicFrakturTextualisHumanist1,400–1,900 CE quadrata Humanist Miniscule FrakturTimesTextualisHumanist1,400 CE quadrata Jenson abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz FrakturTimesHumanist1,470 CE TimesHumanist © Kevin Woodland, 2020 Times GRAPHIC DESIGN HISTORY / MEDIEVAL SCRIPTS / Blackletter 32 / 39
1,100–1,600 CE Blackletter The term “blackletter” refers to a collection of medieval book scripts that evolved from the Carolingian minuscule in various parts of Europe.
Blackletter scripts are characterized by their angular, high-contrast structure, giving them an aggressive appearance compared to their softer humanist predecessors.
The term itself refers to the extreme amount of ink coverage due to the wide downstrokes, especially when applied to full bodies of text.
They style was eventually immortalized in print during the incunabula period by printers such as Johannes Gutenberg and William Caxton.
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1,000 CE Textura • The first (and most classic) form of blackletter • Tall, condensed, heavy ink coverage • The visual counterpart to Gothic architecture • Also called “Textura Quadrata,” or “Textualis” • Named after its fabric-like coverage • Immortalized by Gutenberg in his 42-line bible circa 1455
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1,100–1,600 CE Rotunda • “Rotunda Miniscule” • Originated in Italy • Considered the Southern European sibling of Textura • “Rotundus,” a building that has a round, circular floorplan (Latin). • Shows direct influence from Carolingian minuscule • More rounded strokes than Textura, adding considerable variety to the alphabet, increasing legibility
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1,300 CE Bastarda • Also known as “hybrida” • Evolved from textura • Northern Europe (France, Netherlands, Germany) • Late 14th century • “Bastardized” treatments of textura and and cursiva • Quick, easy to write • Their letterforms involved less reorientation of the pen
Bastarda
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© Kevin Woodland, 2020 William Caxton (printer), Canterbury Tales, 1476. Typeface designed by Johann Veldener, based on Burgundian “Littera Bastarda.” Trajan Rustic Greek Uncial Uncial Half-Uncial Visigothic Luxeuil Beneventan Carolingian Insular Protogothic GRAPHIC DESIGN HISTORY / MEDIEVAL SCRIPTS / Blackletter 39 / 39 Textualis quadrata Fraktur Humanist 1,400–1,945 CE Times Fraktur • Primarily a printed typeface • Protestants printed in German using Fraktur, Catholics printed in Latin using Antiqua • German Fraktur coexisted with Antiqua until the early 20th century • Much of the Nazi propaganda was printed using this hand and the style eventually (and unfortunately) became synonymous with the Nazi Regime
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