Trajan Lettering

ABOUT THIS LETTERING IS ABOUT THE MAN AND HIS WIFE.

EMPEROR TRAIANO: A MAN OF LETTERS

In understanding the Trajan column lettering it is important to observe the recent graphic changes to the carved lettering font, as it has been commonly interpreted, and moved into recent digital font formats such as ITC Trajan Pro. This introduction to Trajan aims to shed some new light and thoughts on this much studied artefact and present ideas in a non academic way (and language).

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Trajan’s Column, north of the Roman Forum
Trajan’s ColumnShown within Rome
Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMapClick on the map for a fullscreen view
Location	Trajan’s Forum
Coordinates	41°53?45?N 12°29?3?E
Type	Roman triumphal column
History
Builder	Trajan
Founded	AD 107~113; 1911 years ago

Trajan’s Column (Italian: Colonna Traiana, Latin: Columna Traiani) is a Roman triumphal column in Rome, Italy, that commemorates Roman emperor Trajan‘s victory in the Dacian Wars. It was probably constructed under the supervision of the architect Apollodorus of Damascus at the order of the Roman Senate. It is located in Trajan’s Forum, north of the Roman Forum. Completed in AD 113.

Above: Roman Letters of NGS… NGS Trajan Truecut

DETERIORATIVE CONDITIONAL CHANGES TO THE TRAJAN COLUMN, ROME.

There are interestingly (probably) 3 clear historical chapters in the column’s journey toward fame in its modern day graphic context.

Through that long history several interventions have happened which have impacted on the condition of the marble surface, such as cleaning, and alarmingly, 3 mould making rounds and 24 ‘rubbings’ (Catich era 1930-70), together with the natural aging process. Each have contributed to the deterioration of the carved lettering, none more so that the flat stone cleaning and mould making processes.

The result is the loss of the original clean-cut edges and perimeter boundaries of the priceless incised glyphs.

Chapter 1 era:

AD113

Day 1. The sharply cut new column stood before its audience AD113.

A timeline of standing in all weathers for 2000 years, in the throes of natures annual cycles, becoming gradually worn away by the elements.

Chapter era 2:

1935 – 1970

EDWARD CATICH ERA: THEORIES AND CLARIFICATIONS

Edward M. Catich was an American Roman Catholic priest, teacher, and calligrapher. He is noted for the fullest development of the thesis that the inscribed Roman square capitals of the Augustan age and afterward owed their form wholly to the use of the flat brush, rather than to the exigencies of the chisel or other stone cutting tools.

EXTRACT FROM: https://letterformarchive.org/news/this-just-in-trajan-rubbing-and-recutting/

From 1935 to 1970, Father Edward Catich, a priest and calligraphy teacher from Iowa, made several moulds and rubbings of the inscription. Many supported his research for The Origin of the Serif, his seminal treatise on the letterforms and a set of brush-written letters. Catich’s groundbreaking theory showed that inscriptional letters like those on the Trajan column were painted with a brush before they were cut with a chisel.

The February 14, 1970 rubbing above, is one of about a dozen sets made by Catich. The two nine-foot-wide sheets of thin paper come from the collection of calligraphers Julian and Sheila Waters. We’ve been thrilled to be able to show this direct copy of the inscription to type design students and visitors in person. The Trajan model is a core element for learning the design of capital letterforms, and seeing them at actual size is a rare opportunity.

The Waters family also supplied a painstaking digital capture that merges the sheets into a single image. That image is now available to all in the Online Archive.

For more about the Trajan inscription and Catich, see this excellent Twitter thread by Incunabula. Paul Shaw’s 2015 book, The Eternal Letter is also a great reference on the Trajan capitals’ legacy.

Chapter 3:

1989 to TODAY

THE ‘FONT VERSION’ ERA.

Firstly as a graphic font it can be described as a monster success story. Sidelined only by the great Helvetica and other super glyphs, Baskerville, Bodoni and Gotham.

As a font, it was re-born in 1989 and designed by Carol Twomby. At that time it was touted as the next new big thing. James Mosley, a well-known historian said: “Trajan is the new Helvetica.”

The Trajan font chapter really project began with Sumner Stone, the Director of Type at Adobe during the 80s. Stone was the designer of another well-known classical font that was also inspired by Trajan’s column — ITC Stone. Stone was inspired to create this font by seeing the classical lettering on the sacral buildings on the campus of Reed College, USA.

Stone wanted to expand on his earlier exploration and to create a new digital typeface. Carol Twombly was hired to create the type by borrowing the classical lettering, adding uniformity and balance, and adapting it for the digital age.

My first impression of the font was that it bore the key hallmarks of its originator so much so that it drew me in to inspect closely the finer details of the glyphs.

My love affair with the font began to fade as I saw some fairly clunky serif endpoint details that I knew from watching my grandfather cut these types of letters, couldn’t be a true version and reference to the original carved inscription.

So the journey began to understand what these ‘print based’ interpretations were made.

Chapter 4:

2019 – TODAY

THE ‘RESTORATION FONT’ ERA.

Typographically rebuilding the restored, original Trajan forms.

Above: ‘Trajan’ formatted Letters in the entrance of the gladiator’s arena tunnel, Pompeii made 25 years before the column itself. Nick and Seraina lettering artists AKA NGS.

The ‘Satri wall’ and other artefacts around the archaeological site of Pompeii Pompeii reveal close relatives of Trajan typographic style – the panel shown was made some 30 years before the Trajan column.

By understanding the effect of natural erosion we can see that both the Catich Rubbings and the Carol Twomby approach have redrawn the letter shapes and in particular the serif structures from worn and rounded out forms.

Nature drove away the clean cut forms of the letters as they were carved and intended to be seen.

Recent Posts