Date: 1934 Designer:
Jan van Krimpen Foundry:
Enschedé Location:
Haarlem, Holland Current equivalent:
No direct modern equivalent exists. See also:
Romanée by the same designer
Technologies:
Metal (foundry) | | Famous for:
First attempt at the large-family concept of related italics. Applications: Religious and Devotional Ubiquity:
Very rarely used Category:
Chancery Italic Stress: Angled
Serifs: Calligraphic | | Design history:
Cancellaresca Bastarda is a graceful narrow italic with long descenders and ascenders, and a large array of character variations and swashes. The uppercase and lowercase alone ran to 167 characters including ligatures, anticipating large-family calligraphic fonts such as Poetica Chancery by at least 50 years. Jan van Krimpen's types have been called 'austerely beautiful' but are little known outside of his native Holland. The Enschedé Foundry for whom he worked in the mid 20th century still rigidly controls his types, and none of these have been cross licensed, redistributed or pirated. As a result, Cancellaresca Bastarda is one of the rarest typefaces. | |  |
