The Universal Penman, George Bickham (365 Books, Book 1)
And we're starting off with a not-a-"proper"-book type book.
The Universal Penman by George Bickham is a collection of the 200+ plates Bickham, a master engraver and calligrapher, first published in the 1740's.
It's a true treasure trove of (mainly) roundhand calligraphy and contains plenty of pictorial scenes, flourishes, panels and frames to inspire a calligrapher or designer.
Obviously the main interest is for type and calligraphy geeks, but many of the plates consist of ponderings and proverbs about various virtues and vices as well as bills and receipts; most of which are not just aesthetically appealing, but amusing as well.
For example, I think this one is a Malfoy family motto:
Merit should be for ever plac'd in knowledge, judgment, wit, & taste;
for these, 'tis own'd, without dispute, alone distinguish man from brute.
Some of them are clever:
Custom, which often wisdom over-rules, thus only serves for reason, to the fools.
And occasionally I misread things, such as "Success in Business - Or, the Art of Thieving" instead of "Success in Business - Or, the Art of Thriving". *cough*
Overall it's good value for the plethora of samples ("individual items are permission-free and may be used (up to ten items per use) without permission, payment, or credit line"). Printing and paper quality is decent, and the binding is such that it won't fall apart if you scan things from it.
I also paged through George Bickham's Penmanship Made Easy (Young Clerk's Assistant), but I won't count that as it hardly constitutes a booklet, let alone a book.
A note: the penmen - by and large - still use the long "s" and German type in some cases, so I don't know how tedious it would be to read for someone not used to that. If you were to use this to improve your own penmanship, you'd have to take that into consideration, as well as the fact that this book provides no instructions whatsoever.
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The Universal Penman by George Bickham is a collection of the 200+ plates Bickham, a master engraver and calligrapher, first published in the 1740's.
It's a true treasure trove of (mainly) roundhand calligraphy and contains plenty of pictorial scenes, flourishes, panels and frames to inspire a calligrapher or designer.
Obviously the main interest is for type and calligraphy geeks, but many of the plates consist of ponderings and proverbs about various virtues and vices as well as bills and receipts; most of which are not just aesthetically appealing, but amusing as well.
For example, I think this one is a Malfoy family motto:
Merit should be for ever plac'd in knowledge, judgment, wit, & taste;
for these, 'tis own'd, without dispute, alone distinguish man from brute.
Some of them are clever:
Custom, which often wisdom over-rules, thus only serves for reason, to the fools.
And occasionally I misread things, such as "Success in Business - Or, the Art of Thieving" instead of "Success in Business - Or, the Art of Thriving". *cough*
Overall it's good value for the plethora of samples ("individual items are permission-free and may be used (up to ten items per use) without permission, payment, or credit line"). Printing and paper quality is decent, and the binding is such that it won't fall apart if you scan things from it.
I also paged through George Bickham's Penmanship Made Easy (Young Clerk's Assistant), but I won't count that as it hardly constitutes a booklet, let alone a book.
A note: the penmen - by and large - still use the long "s" and German type in some cases, so I don't know how tedious it would be to read for someone not used to that. If you were to use this to improve your own penmanship, you'd have to take that into consideration, as well as the fact that this book provides no instructions whatsoever.
This entry is a mirror of http://zanzando.dreamwidth.org/152956.html |
comments | Please comment at Dreamwidth, using OpenID if you don't have an account. Or ask me for an invite!