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Bell (Monotype)
Encyclopedia
Bell is a Scotch Roman
typeface designed in 1788 by Richard Austin. After a short initial period of popularity, the face fell until disuse until it was revived in the 1930s, after which it enjoyed an enduring acceptance as a text face.
lower case:
square dot over the letter i.
double storey a.
upper case:
dropped horizontal element on A.
figures:
, commissioned Austin, a skilful punch cutter first trained as an engraver, to produce a face for his British Letter Foundry. Bell wanted a sharply serifed face, like Didot
in its contrast of thick and thin strokes, but more like Baskerville
in its use of bracketed, less rectilinear, serifs. The result was the first Scotch Roman
face, later described by Stanley Morison
as the first English modern typeface. After Bell's foundry was closed, the matrices came into the possession of Stephenson Blake
.
The initial success of the face was short lived however, as the introduction of lithography
at the beginning of the nineteenth century caused taste in typefaces to change dramatically. Thus, while Bell's type was seldom seen after 1800 in England, it went on to be come a favorite in the United States. When the Boston publisher Henry Houghton went to Europe to purchace type for his Riverside Press he selected Bell. Back in Boston the face was called copperplate. In 1900, when Bruce Rogers
found the face at the Riverside Press, he used it for book work under the name Brimmer. D.B. Updike
used another font of this type at his Merrymount Press
where it was called Mountjoye.
In 1926 Stanley Morison came upon a sample of the type and arranged for itr revival by Monotype Corporation
which appeared in 1930. The 1932 Monotype revival included a wide range of Austin's character variants, including swash versions of the uppercase characters A, J, N, Q, T, V, and Y. The figures are distinct for being lining, and proportioned to set at approximately three-quarter the height of the capitals. The designer Jan Tschichold
favored the typeface Bell in much of his book design, and mentioned it in his book Typographische Gestaltung.
The face should not be confused with the sans-serif typefaces Bell Gothic and Bell Centennial
developed for AT&T, which are not related.
Scotch Roman
Scotch Roman refers to a class of typefaces popular in the early nineteenth century, particularly in the United States and to a lesser extent the United Kingdom...
typeface designed in 1788 by Richard Austin. After a short initial period of popularity, the face fell until disuse until it was revived in the 1930s, after which it enjoyed an enduring acceptance as a text face.
Visual Distinctive Characteristics
Characteristics of this typeface are:lower case:
square dot over the letter i.
double storey a.
upper case:
dropped horizontal element on A.
figures:
History
John Bell, impressed by the clarity and contrast found in contemporary French typefaces cut by Firmin DidotFirmin Didot
Firmin Didot was a French printer, engraver, and type founder. He invented the word "stereotype", which in printing refers to the metal printing plate created for the actual printing of pages , and used the process extensively, revolutionizing the book trade by his cheap editions...
, commissioned Austin, a skilful punch cutter first trained as an engraver, to produce a face for his British Letter Foundry. Bell wanted a sharply serifed face, like Didot
Didot (typeface)
Didot is a name given to a group of typefaces named after the famous French printing and type producing family. The classification is known as modern, or Didone. The typeface we know today was based on a collection of related types developed in the period 1784–1811. Firmin Didot cut the letters,...
in its contrast of thick and thin strokes, but more like Baskerville
Baskerville
Baskerville is a transitional serif typeface designed in 1757 by John Baskerville in Birmingham, England. Baskerville is classified as a transitional typeface, positioned between the old style typefaces of William Caslon, and the modern styles of Giambattista Bodoni and Firmin Didot.The...
in its use of bracketed, less rectilinear, serifs. The result was the first Scotch Roman
Scotch Roman
Scotch Roman refers to a class of typefaces popular in the early nineteenth century, particularly in the United States and to a lesser extent the United Kingdom...
face, later described by Stanley Morison
Stanley Morison
Stanley Morison was an English typographer, designer and historian of printing.Born in Wanstead, Essex, Morison spent most of his childhood and early adult years at the family home in Fairfax Road, Harringay...
as the first English modern typeface. After Bell's foundry was closed, the matrices came into the possession of Stephenson Blake
Stephenson Blake
Stephenson Blake was a British Type foundry, based in Sheffield, England. Active from the 19th century until the 1990s, it remained the last active typefoundry in Britain.-Type Founding:...
.
The initial success of the face was short lived however, as the introduction of lithography
Lithography
Lithography is a method for printing using a stone or a metal plate with a completely smooth surface...
at the beginning of the nineteenth century caused taste in typefaces to change dramatically. Thus, while Bell's type was seldom seen after 1800 in England, it went on to be come a favorite in the United States. When the Boston publisher Henry Houghton went to Europe to purchace type for his Riverside Press he selected Bell. Back in Boston the face was called copperplate. In 1900, when Bruce Rogers
Bruce Rogers
Bruce Rogers was an American typographer and type designer, acclaimed by some as the greatest book designer of the twentieth century. Rogers was known for his "classical" style of design, rejecting modernism, never using asymmetrical arrangements, rarely using sans serif type faces, favoring...
found the face at the Riverside Press, he used it for book work under the name Brimmer. D.B. Updike
Daniel Berkeley Updike
Daniel Berkeley Updike was an American printer and historian of typography.Updike was born at Providence, Rhode Island. In 1880 he joined the publishers Houghton, Mifflin & Company, of Boston as an errand boy. He worked for the firm's Riverside Press and trained as a printer but soon moved to...
used another font of this type at his Merrymount Press
Merrymount Press
The Merrymount Press was a printing company, both scholarly and craftsmanlike, founded and run by Daniel Berkeley Updike in Boston, Massachusetts, and extant during the years 1893–1941...
where it was called Mountjoye.
In 1926 Stanley Morison came upon a sample of the type and arranged for itr revival by Monotype Corporation
Monotype Corporation
Monotype Imaging Holdings is a Delaware corporation based in Woburn, Massachusetts and specializing in typesetting and typeface design as well as text and imaging solutions for use with consumer electronics devices. Monotype Imaging Holdings is the owner of Monotype Imaging Inc., Linotype,...
which appeared in 1930. The 1932 Monotype revival included a wide range of Austin's character variants, including swash versions of the uppercase characters A, J, N, Q, T, V, and Y. The figures are distinct for being lining, and proportioned to set at approximately three-quarter the height of the capitals. The designer Jan Tschichold
Jan Tschichold
Jan Tschichold was a typographer, book designer, teacher and writer.-Life:Tschichold was the son of a provincial signwriter, and he was trained in calligraphy...
favored the typeface Bell in much of his book design, and mentioned it in his book Typographische Gestaltung.
The face should not be confused with the sans-serif typefaces Bell Gothic and Bell Centennial
Bell Centennial
Bell Centennial is a sans-serif typeface designed by Matthew Carter in the period 1975–8. The typeface was commissioned by AT&T as a proprietary type to replace their then current directory typeface Bell Gothic on the occasion of AT&T’s one hundredth anniversary...
developed for AT&T, which are not related.
Foundry Type
- Bell (1788, British Letter Foundry)
- Bell (1930, English MonotypeMonotype CorporationMonotype Imaging Holdings is a Delaware corporation based in Woburn, Massachusetts and specializing in typesetting and typeface design as well as text and imaging solutions for use with consumer electronics devices. Monotype Imaging Holdings is the owner of Monotype Imaging Inc., Linotype,...
) - Bell (1940, Lanston Monotype)
- Bell (1949 Stephenson BlakeStephenson BlakeStephenson Blake was a British Type foundry, based in Sheffield, England. Active from the 19th century until the 1990s, it remained the last active typefoundry in Britain.-Type Founding:...
)