 | |  |
Bibliographical theorists such as Fredson Bowers and G. Thomas Tanselle have noted that bibliographers record the vertical measurement for twenty lines of unleaded type as part of their analytical descriptions of printed books.[1] In addition, Bowers has advised recording the appropriate point size as well as the common name for the printing types found in books.
Regrettably, however, bibliographers do not usually have the actual type in hand as do printers; rather they must deal with the printed image—the type face as it appears on the page. Nor do they always have specimen sheets or other primary sources at hand to consult regarding the common names. Furthermore, some previous efforts to reconcile this situation have been flawed in their mathematical calculations and as a result have misled unsuspecting researchers.
This article seeks to alleviate those problems by providing a reliable comparative study of the sizes and names of type. Specifically, it attempts (1) to furnish extensive millimeter measurements for twenty lines of type, (2) to calculate accurately the equivalent measurements in inches and in pica as well as fournier and didot points, and (3) to correlate the common type names for seven countries over six centuries.
| | |