THE OLD SCHOOL PRESS

Moments in the making of Oxford's Ornaments

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Here I am putting together an arrangement which appears on the colophon page. It is composed of two units that are mirrors of each other. In the world of Monotype ornaments this would be a straightforward affair as ornaments would be cast on 'standard' body sizes: 12pt, 14pt, 18pt etc. Things are not as simple here as these historic types were cast on pre-point-system bodies such as long primer and pica, which do not correspond exactly with point-system sizes. As a result I have to use a great many 'hair spaces' (which are either 1/72 in. or 1/144 in. thick) to get these arrangements to fit. It's a time-consuming and fiddly business.