Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
Baskerville
References
Images
Figure 16: English typography, 18th century. (Right) A page from John Baskerville's Virgil, printed in Cambridge in 1757.
Britannica AI Icon

Baskerville

typeface
Written by
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last updated

Quick Summary

Figure 16: English typography, 18th century. (Right) A page from John Baskerville's Virgil, printed in Cambridge in 1757.
Figure 16: English typography, 18th century. (Right) A page from John Baskerville's Virgil, printed in Cambridge in 1757.

Baskerville is a typeface of great distinction created by English printer John Baskerville in the 18th century. Baskerville's works are considered fine examples of printing art. He experimented with typefounding, leading to his distinctive typeface.1

Baskerville's typography was known for its bold quality, achieved through highly glossed paper and a unique black ink he developed. While criticized in England during his time, his types were later purchased by a French dramatist. The surviving punches and matrices were recognized, and the Baskerville type has since been revived for its clarity and balance, making it suitable for continuous reading. This typeface is a significant development in the history of roman type.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
2 Britannica Sources
  1. John Baskerville
  2. typography - The middle years

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.