Church Text-1794 -"History"

"Throughout the 15th & 16th c. specialized styles of writing were used within various professions. There were styles to be used for financial matters, others for legal matters, and yet others for religious matters. This is an example of "Church Text," a stylized version of blackletter intended to be applied to religious matters.

Because of its contrived fanciness, it eventually became popular with scribes as just an ornate letterform for uses other than religious. The 's' was rather abstract looking something like a backwards 'a'. The 'y' could be mistaken for a 'u' as the descender was just a hairline. Tomorrow I will post another version of Church Text from 60 years later showing how it became more legible for a period before all restraint was cast aside in the Victorian era."

~September 27, 2010, Don Marsh~
©2010 Don Marsh