Write Calligraphy
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Western calligraphy is the calligraphy of the Latin writing system, and to a lesser degree the Greek and Cyrillic writing systems. Early alphabets had evolved by about 3000 BC. From the Greek alphabet evolved the Latin alphabet. Capital letters emerged first, followed by the invention of lower case letters in the Carolingian period.
Long, heavy rolls of papyrus were replaced by the Romans with the first books,
initially simply folded pages of parchment made from animal skins. Reed pens
were replaced by quill pens.
Christianity gave a boost to the development of writing through the prolific
copying of the Bible and other sacred texts. Uncial letters were used by monks
in Ireland, Scotland, and other places on the Celtic fringes of Europe, hence
the name "Insular style" for this type of writing. The 7th-9th Century in
northern Europe was the heyday of the illuminated manuscript, exemplified by the
Lindisfarne Gospels.
Charlemagne helped the spread of beautiful writing by bringing Alcuin, the Abbot
of York, to his capital of Aachen. Alcuin undertook a major revision of all
styles of script and all texts. He then developed a new "hand" named after his
patron Charlemagne: "Carolingian minuscule style".
The Fraktur followed in the 11th century, and Italy contributed Chancery and
Italic scripts. What followed was the heyday of the illuminated manuscript.
Hand-written and hand-decorated books became less common after the invention of
printing by Johann Gutenberg in the 15th century. However, at the end of the
19th century, William Morris and the Arts and Crafts Movement rediscovered and
popularised calligraphy. Many famous calligraphers were influenced by Morris,
especially Edward Johnston, Eric Gill and others.
Some important contemporary calligraphers are Arthur Baker and Hermann Zapf. As
handwritten forms of communication have become more rare, calligraphy is often
reserved for special occasions and events, most notably the addressing of
wedding invitations and announcements. However, graffiti-style lettering, a
dramatic, angular, block hand, has become common in various media since the
1970s. Graffiti is especially associated with hip-hop, being one of its "four
elements".
More Calligraphy Items: Books, Sets
In the United Kingdom many calligraphers belong to the Society of Scribes and
Illuminators, which provides training and development to members.
There are many calligraphic typefaces such as Fraktur, Lombardis, Uncial,
Italic, Roundhand, and Blackletter.
Copperplate is name of a style of calligraphic writing, using a sharp pointed
nib instead of the flat nib used in most calligraphic writing. Its name comes
from the sharp lines of the writing style resembling the etches of engraved
copper. The Copperplate typeface attempts to emulate copper engraved letters.
Copperplate obtains its name from the copybooks of the 18th and 19th centuries,
which were created by the engraving of copper printing plates using mirrors.
Students worked strenuously to copy these works, although the final results
could never be obtained, because the works were created originally from the
chiseling of copper plates, rather than the usage of fountain or quill pens.
Nonetheless, the repeated efforts by these students resulted in phenomenal
qualities.
The source of this article is
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