John Baskerville
(1706-1775), Printer and type-designerEarly Georgian Portraits Catalogue Entry
Sitter in 1 portrait
John Baskerville was a type designer and printer. He began his work as printer and publisher in 1757 and in 1758 became printer to Cambridge University. Baskerville's first volume was a quarto edition of Virgil. His typefaces introduced the modern, pseudo classical style, with level serifs and with emphasis on the contrast of light and heavy lines. Books printed by Baskerville are typically large, with wide margins, made with excellent paper and ink. His masterpiece was a folio Bible, published in 1763. The types were rediscovered and in 1953 were presented to the Cambridge University Press.
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