Baskerville

John Baskerville was a British typographer who revolutionized a clear typeface. He set up a printing house and published his first work, an edition of Virgil. Although he was an atheist he printed a folio bible in 1763. He was known for his clear and careful presswork rather than ornamentation. His type had level serifs with emphasis on contrasting light and heavy lines which influenced Didot. His business included paper-mache, japanning and of course printing. Typically his printed works were large with wide margins. The developed a technique to make a much smoother whiter paper which emphasized his black type. He printed works for Cambridge University and was a member of the Royal Society of Arts. Another well-known member, Benjamin Franklin, admired John’s designs so much that he brought them back to the United States. Baskerville became the adopted font for much of the federal government publishing. After his death in 1775 his wife operated the press until 1777. His work was bought by Beaumarchais and were used in a 7-volume edition of Voltaire. He is recognized as one of the leading transformers of English printing and type founding along with William Caslon. Baskerville is classified as a traditional serif shifted the axis of rounded letters to a more vertical position resulting in a more clearly consistent look.