A specimen by William Caslon, letter-founder, in Chiswell-Street, London.

Caslon, William

A specimen by William Caslon, letter-founder, in Chiswell-Street, London.

London

[William Caslon]

[1738]

Broadside.

One of the first type specimens issued by William Caslon (1693–1766), who began his type foundry under the patronage of printer William Bowyer. This 1738 specimen contains Caslon’s renowned roman old-face types, as well as several exotic letterforms, including Gothic, Coptic, Armenian, and Samaritan. Caslon’s roman types were greatly admired by Benjamin Franklin and other colonial American printers, and they were used for the official printing of the Declaration of Independence.