Decretals of Gregory IX, 1241 (the invention of social writing)

see how this super-dense page becomes a site of communication and exchange.

the differences in red and blue mean that these texts were written at different times.

Decretals (decree) were written by the Pope and bishops that stated Church laws. decretals were taught in medieval universities, particularly Bologna and Paris, the commentaries were possibly added during the lectures.

Bound in eighteenth-century French sheep. Covers with blind double-rule border, spine in seven compartments with six raised bands, decoratively tooled in gilt in a floral design in six compartments and with a burgundy morocco gilt lettering label in the remaining compartment, board edges decoratively tooled in gilt, marbled end-papers (French curl, or snail, pattern).

The binding is rubbed and worn, the joints are tender and starting to split at head and tail, there is worming in the top and bottom spine compartments, and a few small stains to the top edge. This manuscript shows signs of considerable use over several centuries, with occasional staining and soiling. There is minor worming at the beginning and end occasionally affecting a letter or two.

What is interesting here is design as self-design. In other words see it as a kind of DIY of legalese.

See more here.

Prüfening dedicatory inscription (1119 ad)

The unusual sharpness of the inscription letters has long led epigraphists to believe that they were not carved by hand into the clay. 

The typographic character of the inscription was demonstrated in a systematic examination of the text body by the typesetter and linguist Herbert Brekle. His findings confirm that the text was produced with a printing method similar to that of the Phaistos Disc: The 17-line text was created by pressing individual, pre-formed stamps (probably made of wood) into the soft clay in a way that, for each letter which occurred more than once, the same letter stamp was re-used, thereby producing identical imprints throughout the text. 

Thus, the essential criterion for typographic text production was met: repeated use of identical types for a single character. In applying this technique, it is not relevant that the Prüfening inscription was made by stamping letters into the clay and not − as later practiced by Gutenberg − by printing on paper since neither the technical execution nor the print medium defines movable type printing but rather the criterion of type identity.

typography is an art

de re military, roberto valturio, 15th century

typography makes & arranges "type" to make written language legible, readable and appealing

it means selecting typefaces, point sizes, line lengths (characters per line). we have the following elements:  

1. tracking: letter-spacing or between letters, 

2. leading: adjusting the space between pairs of letters

3. kerning: adjusting the space between characters. imagine "r" and "n" placed too close to be misread as "m." 

typography also means style, arrangement, and appearance of the letters, numbers, and symbols created by the process. 

who is involved in typography?

typesetters, graphic designers, art directors, manga artists, comic book artists, etc.

the irony? 

as the digital revolution opened up typography to new generations of DIY designers, the application of principles and best practices developed over generations of skilled workers and professionals has diminished.

ars moriendi: the typeface of death

Ars Moriendi (15th Century)

the wood block is prepared as a relief matrix, which means the areas to show 'white' are cut away with a knife or chisel, leaving the characters or image to show in 'black' at the original surface level. the block was cut along the grain of the wood. it is only necessary to ink the block and bring it into firm and even contact with the paper or cloth to achieve an acceptable print. the content would, of course, print "in reverse" or mirror-image, a further complication when text was involved. the art of carving the woodcut is known as xylography, a term is rarely used in english.

the sample above is Ars Moriendi (1415-1450), which offers advice on the protocols and procedures of a good death and. how to "die well," according to christian precepts of the late middle ages. see this in the context of the horrors of the Black Death, 60 years earlier and consequent social upheavals of the 15th century. Ars Moriendi was extremely popular, translated into most european languages: the first in a western literary tradition of guides to death and dying.

today we brush death under the carpet and the dying off to the hospital. our society "designs" death as an unfortunate condition & treated as "geriatric apartheid." the old with the the old in a world of administrative care, nurses, hospices and the smell of Clorox.

A brief history of typefaces in the middle ages

Script evolution changes in time, and here are some of the reasons:

1- Geography, language, existing culture and cultural influences from the outside and finally, history (whether war, annexation, colonization, technological developments, etc).

 trajan, circa 1st-3rd centuries at (trajan column)

2- Trajan, above, becomes Rustica, below,

rustica, circa 5th century ad

Why? 

Nobody really knows.  Why are Latin peoples more boisterous than the Nordic? Climate? Food? Language? ALL OF THE ABOVE. 

I made the point to compare Romanic vs. Gothic. 

The form in the south is more rounded and expanding, the north is ascetic and ascending.

3- With the advent of papyri and vellum we get: NEW ROMAN CURSIVE (miniscules). 

This is a technological achievement: THE INK FLOWS! It was used from approximately the 3rd-7th century, and uses letter forms that are more recognizable to modern readers; "a", "b", "d", and "e" have taken a more familiar shape, and the other letters are proportionate to each other rather than varying wildly in size and placement on a line.

roman cursive (see that this is a faster trace, like gel ink in paper today)

4- We also get UNCIALS (majuscules), this is the lettering of power, church, aristocracy, royalty. Uncials spread all over: west, east, north. Greeks loved uncials! Byzantium loved uncials! Why? I guess it's haiographic.

This is around 7th-9th centuries Carolingian in the west, & Byzantium in the east.

uncials 7-9th centuries

5- Then we get half-uncials. The typeface of the church!

Why? They allow for serifs! That's the beginning of ascenders and descenders (remember half-uncials have nothing to do with uncials, all it means is that it's a church letter! Hymns, Psalters, etc).

half-uncials

6- Now the half-uncial crosses the channel to the British Isles. Where? Ireland. Why? The answer may be in the Book of Kells! The Irish were really into illuminated texts... (and they mixed it with keltic paganism). To note, the Irish gave these typefaces a makeover with the use of rinceaux and more complex superimposition of knots. 

or this (much later) 11th century, minuscule:

7- It's from this travel to the Isles that we get the whole proto-gothic family:

Visigothic,

Merovingian, basically a Carolingian minuscule circa (7th-9th century)

merovingian

and Beneventan (basically a derivation of Carolingian minuscule),

benvenetan

In time you get this beauty. The Gothic Textura!

Mature Gothic is already the Humanist style.

Bastarda, Chancery, secretary, etc, and the rest are just variations of these styles.

The Carolingian typeface

The Carolingian minuscule typeface, developed during the reign of Charlemagne (8th–9th century), is known for its clarity, uniformity, and legibility. 

Here are its key characteristics: 

1. Readability & Uniformity 

Letters are well-spaced and rounded, making the script easy to read. It introduced clear word separation, which was uncommon in earlier scripts. The script features consistent ascenders and descenders, giving it a balanced appearance. 

2. Standardized Letterforms 

The script follows a lowercase (minuscule) format, unlike earlier scripts that used more uppercase or mixed forms. Uppercase letters (majuscule) were used for capitalization at the beginning of sentences. Uncial and half-uncial influences are seen in its rounded forms. 

3. Influence on Later Scripts 

Carolingian minuscule was the foundation for modern lowercase letters in Latin-based alphabets. The script later evolved into Gothic script in the medieval period and influenced the humanist script of the Renaissance, which led to modern Roman typefaces. 

4. Decorative Elements Manuscripts often featured illuminated capitals at the beginning of paragraphs. Ligatures (joining of letters) were minimal compared to earlier scripts. 

5. Standardization Under Charlemagne Charlemagne, under the guidance of scholars like Alcuin of York, promoted the script as a way to unify writing across his empire. Used widely in monasteries for copying texts, helping preserve Latin literature and religious manuscripts.

Merovingian typeface

 

The Merovingian typeface is a historical script style inspired by the handwriting of the Merovingian dynasty (5th–8th centuries) in early medieval France. 

It is not a standardized typeface but a category of scripts used in Merovingian manuscripts. Here are its key characteristics: 

1. Merovingian developed from Late Roman cursive and Uncial scripts. IT IS the predecessor to Carolingian minuscule, which became the foundation for modern Latin script. Primarily used in monastic manuscripts (e.g., religious texts, charters). 

2. Visual Characteristics:

Angular & irregular letterforms: Letters often appear sharp, with inconsistent stroke weights. Elongated ascenders and descenders: Some letters have tall, narrow strokes. Ligatures & abbreviations: Frequent use of connected letters and shorthand symbols. 

Distinct letter shapes: "a" is often open and looks like a "u." 

"s" appears long or similar to an "r." 

"e" sometimes resembles a backward "3." 

Slanted strokes: Writing can have a rightward slant. 

3. Regional Variations:

Different monasteries developed their own styles, leading to variations such as the Luxeuil script (Burgundy), which is angular, compact, and difficult to read. Corbie script (Picardy): More rounded, transitional to Carolingian minuscule. Laon script: Distinguished by large, elaborate capitals. 

4. Usage & Legacy:

Primarily used in Latin religious manuscripts. It was replaced by Carolingian minuscule in the 9th century. Revived in modern times for decorative and historical typography. Would you like an example of how Merovingian script looks or a modern digital typeface inspired by it? You said: Yes.  

Merovingian script is quite rare in modern typography, but some digital fonts are inspired by it. While no direct "Merovingian" typeface is widely used today, some historical script fonts attempt to capture its essence. Here’s what you can look for: Examples of Merovingian Script Luxeuil Minuscule and Corbie Minuscule are two well-known regional variations. They have a dense, angular, and somewhat chaotic look, distinguishing them from later Carolingian minuscule. 

Manuscripts from St. Denis and Laon exhibit more decorative, elaborate strokes, especially in capital letters. 

Rome, circa 200 AD (what a beauty!)

totalview,

 

view from campus martius

colisseum view,

view from the temple of jupiter, optimus Maximus

the map was commissioned by Mussolini in 1933, and the plaster model was created by archaeologist Italo Gismondi, who worked on the piece throughout his life. The initial core of the scale model was completed for a large exhibition celebrating the 2,000th anniversary of the death of Augustus! In the 1950s; it was installed permanently in the Museum of Roman Civilization, with Gismondi continuing to expand the model up until 1971.

What's the mark here?

1. Arches and Vaults 

The round arch was a staple of Roman engineering, distributing weight efficiently. Barrel vaults and groin vaults allowed for expansive interior spaces. 

2. Domes

The Romans developed massive domes, such as the Pantheon’s dome, which remains the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world. Oculus openings provided light and reduced weight. 

3. Columns and Orders 

While inspired by Greek architecture, Romans modified classical orders, introducing: Tuscan Order (simplified Doric) Composite Order (a mix of Ionic and Corinthian). A new development: Columns were often decorative rather than structural. 

4. Monumentality and Grandeur 

Structures were built to impress and reflect Roman power, such as: Temples (e.g., Temple of Jupiter, Pantheon) Amphitheaters (e.g., Colosseum) Bathhouses (e.g., Baths of Caracalla) Triumphal arches (e.g., Arch of Constantine) 

5. Urban Planning and Infrastructure 

Romans designed well-organized cities with grid layouts, forums, and public spaces. Aqueducts supplied water, while roads (viae) connected the empire efficiently. 

6. Residential Architecture 

Wealthy Romans lived in domus (single-family homes with courtyards). The general population lived in insulae (multi-story apartment blocks). 

7. Decorative Elements 

Walls were often adorned with frescoes, mosaics, and sculptures. Public buildings and homes featured coffered ceilings and marble finishes.

how to "read" the context of a "character"

Gospel of Mark, Book of Durrow

biblical manuscripts can be divided into four groupings:

1- papyri,
2- uncials,
3- minuscules, and
4- lectionaries.

1- is based on the physical material (papyrus) used in the manuscripts. 

2, 3- two divisions are based on the script: uncial (majuscule) and minuscule. 

4- is based on content: lectionary (comes from list of "lections" for reading in a divine service).

Most papyrus manuscripts and lectionaries before the year 1000 are written in uncial script (uncial means "majuscule").

let's take a look at the "N" majuscule above in the Book of Durrow:

we have: base line (where all letters sit), mast (embroidered here), ascender (the portion of the minuscule letter that extends above meanline of a font), descender (the portion of the letter below the base line), and cap height.

observe, there is no separation between the letters, no punctuation (european languages and syntaxes are still evolving),

this typeface is known as scripto continua. 

take a look at this beauty, which was read based on knowledge of language "context" based on whether you have one, two, or three "minims."

if you're into typeface esoterics, click here.  

 Virgil's Georgics, made with capitalis quadrata

nobody ever makes the change, the mark changes itself

(Romanesque) Sainte-Croix Abbey church of Quimperlé, Normandy (1083)

let's do a little bit of paleography of typeface.  

imagine the vaults as the ascenders of the typeface. we start with romanesque, which is sort of the rustica typeface. 

 

romanesque has roman & bizantine influences, the rustica has greek influences. with romanesque, the vault is in its proper "uncial" place. 

no wonder greeks loved uncials!

now, the transition from R to G is a slow one. the story goes that the new church at Durham Cathedral began in 1093, under William de St-Calais (I visited the Durham in 2004, the city grows around the cathedral, though the have a beautiful little botanical garden). 

look at the columns exhibiting chevron and lozenge designs. the idea is to cover all possible space with motifs.

the cathedral was originally intended to be built in romanesque rounded-arch groin vaults, but as the work continued on the nave the norman builders (normans are french from normandy) experimented with pointed arches, which directed the weight outward and downwards.

this is exactly what happens with scribes in the scriptorium!

why upwards? 

there's a structural novelty: the space between the ribs was filled with small pieces of stone. at the arch  corners the weight (supported by colonettes) the weight transferred downwards to alternating columns and piers below (rather than to the walls). 

since the panels are relatively thin, the rib vaults are lighter than the romanesque barrel and groin vaults, so the walls can be higher and show larger windows (of course the weight of the structure goes outwards and downwards), which is why you need buttresses outside.  

 

GOTHIC WAS AN ACCIDENT!

another way to see it is as the process of gothic itself, which is not a planned thing at all. rather it's the natural selection of the mark in its own iteration. 

at the level of the typeface, there is an undergoing process irrespective of the scribe's doodling alternative fonts in the scriptorium. and forget about the armarius. he just doesn't notice the imperceptibleminute differences in the overall iteration. 

the lesson? IT'S THE MARK THAT CAUSES THE CHANGE.

Transition from R-G, Nave of Durham Cathedral, (1093–1135)

(Sexpartite) Gothic Six-part rib vaults of ceiling of nave of Notre-Dame de Paris (1163–1345) 115 feet tall

(Quadripartite) The choir of Beauvais Cathedral (1225–1272), the tallest of Gothic church interiors (156 feet tall)

the soul of a typeface

above, an example of Merovingian minuscule (circa 7th century), what is interesting here is that this "style" disappeared with the destruction of the Luxeuil monastery. A reputed source has hinted that our English " &" actually derives from the luxet "et."  

Petrus Andronicus, the scribe, writes in his fragmented memoirs: 

types carry their own  souls... some go to heaven, some may not

quite cryptic. what does he mean? 

as similar in appearance, as when a Visigothic "t"

may look like an "a."

or when a soul shows as a twin-like in this early beneventan minuscule "a," which looks like a double cc, so common in Latin syntax?

so, what's the soul of "m" like? 

anonymous speculation from a scribe, at the marginalia of a Codex Calixtinus, reads:

the true form of m has three elements: it strives for more than "n," as it is inverse to "w" and close to the numeral "3."

so, the soul of the letter is the expression manifested in its character.

later in the note Andronicus reveals that, 

it's left to the scribe's wonderful skill to inscribe each character with the inner harmony of the whole, since what would the whole be without each one of its parts?  

the codex wins the natural selection of books!

codex Manesse Ulrich von Singenberg

between the second century and fourth century, the codex had replaced the scroll. instead of a long continuous roll, a codex is a collection of sheets attached at the back. 

advantages: 

1. random access over sequential access, 

2. codex is compact, its pages can be written on both sides. 

3. a codex could hold twice as much text as a scroll.

the codex is equally easy to rest on a table, which permits the reader to take notes while he or she is reading. 

the codex form improved with the separation of words, capital letters, and punctuation, which permitted silent reading! 

tables of contents and indices facilitated direct access to information. this form was so effective that it is still the standard book form, over 1500 years after its appearance. then paper would progressively replace parchment. 

cheaper to produce, it allowed a greater diffusion of books. 

one peculiar code is the codex gigas or the "book of the mad monk".  

 
in the year 1200 or so, a highly devout christian magi known as "Herman the Recluse" vowed to produce the greatest book ever written. from that time on Hermannus Heremitus locked himself away for nearly every waking hour of life in the Benedictine monastery of Podlazice toiling over the construction of the Codex Gigas. 

this was all part of an elaborate self-appointed, but church sanctioned and funded, quest toward enlightenment that led to decades of devotional dedication on the part of a medieval super scribe. when he wasn’t attending worship services or performing his regular monastic duties, the insanely pious Mad Monk of the Black Order worked tirelessly on the Big Book, each and every day (except sunday of course).

 this work is such a feat that the calligraphy alone would lead to deep meditative states that gave him profound visions and revelations. 

he could get lost in a painting for two or three days straight, and that was just one of many illustrations in the Codex Gigas. 

here's another bizarre codex, just published by rizzoli.

Like a guide to an alien world, Codex Seraphinianus is 300 pages of descriptions and explanations for an imaginary existence, all in its own unique (and unreadable) alphabet, complete with thousands of drawings and graphs. Issued for the first time in 1981 by publisher Franco Maria Ricci, it has been a collector’s favorite for years, before witnessing a sudden rise in popularity thanks to a growing fandom on the Internet. 

For an interesting visual history of books, click here. 

the mark of the "rinceaux" in everyday life

a rinceau (plural rinceaux) is a decorative mark consisting of a continuous wavy stemlike motif from which smaller leafy stems or groups of leaves branch out at more or less regular intervals. 

as in this wonderful rustica motif (9th century):

or this lapida monumentale from Pissa (9th century) 

or on the apse of San Clemente Laterano (10th century)

or this Louis XVI frieze ornament (18th century)

or this magnificent iron work on the door of Notre Dame de Paris (12th century)

the trick is to find the mark from which many of these motifs are develped:

 a- greek, b- roman, c- byzantine, d- romanesque, e & f- gothic, g- renaissance, i & h- baroque, j & k- rococo.

what explains the changes?

no one knows exactly, but it definitely comes from the "vision" of that particular epoch. 

where does all this come from? 

everyday life.

how do you "illuminate"?

Macclesfield Psalter, a lavishly illuminated manuscript from Great Britain, written in Latin, circa 1330

the text is written first on sheets of parchment or vellum, i.e., animal hides specially prepared for writing, cut down to the appropriate size. 

after the general layout of the page is planned (e.g., initial capital, borders), the page is lightly ruled with a pointed stick, and you (the scribe) go to work with an ink-pot and either sharpened quill feather or reed pen.

here usage depends on local customs and tastes. 

the Rustica Roman (from the early middle ages) gradually gave way to scripts such as Uncial and half-Uncial, especially in the British Isles, where distinctive scripts such as insular majuscule and insular minuscule developed.

(above you see stocky, richly textured black letter first seen around the 13th century and particularly popular in the later Middle Ages)

illumination takes pre-production to outline the work. you don't want your lettering all crowded into a format dominated by huge ornamented capitals that descended from uncial forms or by illustrations, so you plan for blank spaces for the decoration. see that the scribe and the illuminator are separate labors.

here is an approximate order of tasks:

1- silver-point drawing of the design is executed
2- burnished gold dots are applied
3- application of modulating colors
4- addition to the outlining of marginal figures
5- the penning of a rinceaux (or foliage) appearing on the border of a page
6- finally, the marginal figures are painted.

some examples of rinceaux:

Buffalo, NY (early 20th century)

Albi Cathedral (1280 CE)

Apse, San Clemente al Laterano (500 CE)

Mosaic, Pella, Greece (400 BC)