Universities launch project to examine printer's work

A new £1m research project which aims to uncover the work of a printer and publisher who has a typeface named after him has been launched by two universities.

The work of Birmingham inventor John Baskerville will be examined in a research project led by Birmingham City University (BCU) and the University of Cambridge (UoC).

To mark the 250th anniversary of his death, researchers will use digital technology to examine Baskerville typographic punches, which were designed, cut and used by his Birmingham workshop in the 1750s.

“John Baskerville is a figure writ large in typographic history,” said Dr Caroline Archer-Parré, Professor of Typography at BCU.

“A Birmingham genius with a worldwide influence, Baskerville's typeface has both historical significance and contemporary relevance.”

Baskerville was born in Wolverley, Worcestershire, on 28 January 1706 and died in Birmingham on 8 January 1775.

He developed the revolutionary Baskerville typeface, which is still used today, in Birmingham in the 18th Century.

Project researchers will look to decode the design and manufacture secrets preserved in his typographic punches, which number more than 2,000.

Microscopy, chemical analysis and advanced imaging will be used to examine the tools, with the punches recreated and used by craftspeople and students through the use of 3D modelling.

The research is being funded by a £1m grant from the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

Dr Anne-Marie Carey, Associate Professor of Jewellery at BCU, said it was a "rare opportunity" to investigate the tools of Baskerville’s profession.

“Baskerville’s master punches are the only evidence we have of his workshop, yet hidden within those punches are the clues to their manufacture," she explained.

“Led by a holistic approach and through a multi-faceted team of expertise, this project is an exceptional opportunity to study and decipher Baskerville’s punches in their fascinating detail.”

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