[TYPE SPECIMEN ? SPECIMEN BOOKS AS CULTURAL HISTORY ? INSPIRATION FOR BAUHAUS FONTS AND HELVETICA] Muster-Sammlung von J. G. Schelter & Giesecke, Schriftgiesserei, Messinglinienfabrik und Galvanoplastik, Fachtischlerei und Utensilienfabrik, Maschinenfabrik. Handausgabe [Specimen collection of J. G. Schelter & Giesecke, type foundry, brass line factory and electroplating, joinery and utensil factory, machine factory. Hand-edition]

Giesecke und Schelter; L. Theyer (binding)

Published by

Leipzig, [ca. 1886] (printed in Stuttgart by Kast & Ehinger). Octavo (26.5 × 17.5 cm). Original blue cloth by Hübel & Denck, with elaborate polychrome floral decoration in red, gold, and light blue (signed L. Theyer); marbled edges; [8] leaves including frontis showing the factory building and the title page, 359 (recte: 443), [1] page, 1 leaf, [4], xii pp., 1 leaf, [32] pp. In addition the title, there are six decorative chromolithographed section dividers. Spine rather faded and rubbed to extremities; corners scuffed; internally very good. Extensive, elaborately printed type specimen book presenting Antiqua and Fraktur text fonts, display typefaces, cursive cuts and initials. Among the highlighted fonts are the Egyptienne, Athenienne, Canzlei, Elzevir, Etienne, and Grotesk. The latter was an early linear sans-serif font first cut around 1880, which became widely used and served as inspiration for designers at the Bauhaus Dessau. Also included is a section of Russian, Greek, Hebrew, and other non-Western fonts including Coptic, Tamul, Arabic, and Sanskrit; a variety of ornaments, frames, and other decorative elements, including colorful patterned backgrounds, chess figures, and stitch pattern types (Stickmustertypen); and a large section covering various types of numerals, musical notation, manicules, decorative borders in the Renaissance style. From the point of view of visual culture and cultural history, of particular interest are various prize medaillons, vignettes pertaining to different trades and guilds, coats of arms and royal insignia, including coats of arms of book printers and lithographers (both ink and relief-printed), samples of wine lables and other advertising uses of typography and vignettes, allegorical vignettes, religious symbols, and a very wide array of mixed symbols such as ships, horses, furniture, shoes, carneval scenes, and more. A final section offers various tools for typesetting and printing. The type foundry and machine factory of J. G. Schelter and C. F. Giesecke was founded in 1819 and had become an important, internationally active concern by the 1880s, when this book presented for the first time the entire breadth of the firm's offerings in one attractive volume. In addition to a variety of fonts, ornaments, and other printing equipment, the company produced letterpress presses, cylinder proof presses, and other types of presses. It continued to thrive, with major typographers including Jan Tschichold, Arno Drescher, and Heinz Keune creating exclusive fonts for distribution, before being nationalized in 1946 and becoming part of a "state-owned enterprise" (VEB). For an overview of the firm's history and a list of important typefaces, along with some scans, see the article on Luc Devroye's Type Design Information Page. In the original attractive polychrome cloth binding in the Neo-Renaissance style, signed L. Theyer, for Hübel & Denck in Leipzig, an important bookbinding concern founded in Leipzig in 1875, which was active for numerous publishing houses. As of January 2026, KVK, OCLC show five copies in North America (including one imperfect copy). Seller Inventory # 55319

Bibliographic Details

Title: [TYPE SPECIMEN ? SPECIMEN BOOKS AS CULTURAL ...
Binding: Soft cover
Signed: Signed by Author(s)