Roman cursive script

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July 13, 2026

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Roman cursive script was a running-hand style used in the Roman Empire for informal purposes like notes, business records, and letters. It was designed for speed, which often led to it being written carelessly and becoming difficult to read. Despite its potential for illegibility, Roman cursive was a significant precursor to the minuscule scripts that later developed. This script is distinct from the formal square and rustic capitals used for inscriptions and books, respectively. The term "roman script" itself was later applied by Italian humanists to a clear, orderly writing style they mistakenly believed was ancient Roman, which influenced the development of modern roman and italic typefaces.12

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majuscule
Roman cursive capitals, a running-hand script, were customarily used in the Roman Empire for notes, business records, letters, and other informal or everyday uses. This form could be written with great speed and was, therefore, often written carelessly and tended toward illegibility. It was, nonetheless,…
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Roman cursive capitals, a running-hand script, were customarily used in the Roman Empire for notes, business records, letters, and other informal or everyday uses. This form could be written with great speed and was, therefore, often written carelessly and tended toward illegibility. It was, nonetheless,…
Read More

calligraphy
Uncials, half uncials, and cursive minuscule
…and after is known as cursive minuscule. Like cursive capitals, it was written with a pointed pen, but the pen was held more or less straight. It uses basically the same letter forms as half uncials, although the frequency in cursive minuscule of ligatures between letters tends to conceal the…
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…and after is known as cursive minuscule. Like cursive capitals, it was written with a pointed pen, but the pen was held more or less straight. It uses basically the same letter forms as half uncials, although the frequency in cursive minuscule of ligatures between letters tends to conceal the…
Read More

calligraphy
Cursive capitals
The business hand of the 1st century, used for correspondence and for most documents, private and official alike, is known as cursive capitals. Here the pen, cut to a narrow point, was held at an oblique angle similar to that used for rustic…
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The business hand of the 1st century, used for correspondence and for most documents, private and official alike, is known as cursive capitals. Here the pen, cut to a narrow point, was held at an oblique angle similar to that used for rustic…
Read More

paleography
Styles of writing
The stately Roman scripts, quadrata, rustic, or uncial, were not used for everyday purposes, and, as in the case of Greek, a cursive, rapidly written hand arose in which letters and business documents were inscribed. This hand is found in graffiti on Pompeian walls and in wax…
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The stately Roman scripts, quadrata, rustic, or uncial, were not used for everyday purposes, and, as in the case of Greek, a cursive, rapidly written hand arose in which letters and business documents were inscribed. This hand is found in graffiti on Pompeian walls and in wax…
Read More