spatium Magazin (without an e) in Germany has just released a DVD containing a collection of images scanned from the pages of a myriad of 20th century German type foundry catalogs and specimen. The news announcements and forum discussions so far have all been in German. This offer is so good that it deserves an English translations. So here goes…

This roundup by Hans Reichardt is the first of a series of four DVDs illustrating the diversity and beauty of type specimens and reflecting technical advances made in the printing industry during the 20th century. Included are scans of type specimen cards, brochures, and catalogs from various foundries, such as Bauer, Klingspor, Ludwig & Mayer, Stempel, C. E. Weber, Berthold, Genzsch & Heyse, Joh. Wagner, Flinsch, Schelter & Gieseke, and many more. In addition, books like Seemann’s Handbuch der Schriftarten, Abraham Horodisch’s Die Schrift im schönen Buch unserer Zeit, and Emil Wetzig’s Ausgewählte Druckschriften in Alphabeten are among the DVD’s images as well.

A detailed table of contents may be downloaded as a PDF: bleisatz_d_inhalt_web.pdf (28 kb)…

From the type specimen for “Energos,” Schriftguss Dresden.

All in all, this represents a collection of true treasures that are sure to serve as eye candy and inspiration for interested typeface designers and typographers. The DVD is available via the spatium shop for 20 euros (plus shipping). A few samples from the collection are pictured in this post.

 

Sample from a type specimen index card, problem published by Verlag Klimsch, 1930s.

 

Title page of Benjamin Krebs Nachf. specimen book, Frankfurt/Main.

 

“Langschrift,” from the Flinsch foundry, Frankfurt/Main.

 

Decorative initials for “Liturgisch,” Klingspor foundry, Offenbach/Main.

 

Decorative initials for “Kleukens,” Bauer type foundry, Frankfurt/Main.

 

Type specimen for non-Latin scripts can be found in the past, too. Here is a page from a Stempel foundry brochure for “Arabic, Turkish, and other Islamic languages.”

 
All images on the DVD are saved at 150 dpi resolution. Orders may be placed directly through the spatium Shop. The site is in German, too, but I’m sure that they can respond an help to e-mails written in English. Please contact spatium directly with any questions about this excellent product.