Of the Just Shaping of Letters Part 3

Set the broad limb of T in the midst of its square erect, produced & drawn to a point on either side below, just as you did before in the letter I; then take two points e. and f., distant respectively one-tenth of the whole s.p.a.ce from a. and b., and let the transverse limb of the letter be drawn below e. f. and of an equal length with it; but the projecting extremities of this line are to be cut obliquely, and the tips of these projections shall so far extend above the line a. b. to the right as below they depend to the left. The oblique lines of these projections are to be each a fifth part of the length of a. b.; & the angles of these projections you shall round out by means of circles of diverse radius--namely, for the lesser angle you are to use a diameter only two-thirds of the width of the broader limb; but for the greater angle you shall take a diameter equal to the side of a square contained between the broad and vertical limb and the intercepted portion of the line a. b.

Another method.

Or you make T thus in its square: Take your point e. as before, to the right of a., and cut your transverse limb diagonally, as before, yet so that the projection be dimidiated to the right, and at top the angle remain as it falls; and so at the other extremity, only the point f.

must be moved as near again to b., the cutting line to be a little more erect, & the projection formed a trifle broader than at the hither end; otherwise shall everything remain as before; as I have delineated for you on the opposite page.

[Ill.u.s.tration: T]

THE LETTER V.

V you shall thus make in its square: Bisect c. d. in the point e.; then set the point f. one-tenth of the whole line a. b. beyond a., and in like fashion g. to the hither side of b. Then draw the broad limb of your letter downwards from f. to e. and sharpen it; & thence draw upwards your slender limb to g.; and at the top produce it in either direction, as you did before at the bottom of A; just as you see it shown below.

[Ill.u.s.tration: V]

THE LETTER X.

X you shall form thus: Draw two vertical lines e. f. and g. h. distant respectively one-tenth part of the line a. b. from the sides a. c. and b. d. Then draw the two limbs intersecting one another in the form of a cross--the broad one so that at top, & with its. .h.i.ther side it shall touch e., & at the bottom, and with its farther side h.; but the narrow limb so that at top, and with its farther side it may touch g., & at bottom, with its. .h.i.ther side f. Then add its projections, touching, at top and bottom, the four angles a. b. c. d., & choose a semi-diameter of the larger circle of the length of a fifth part of a. b.; & with that you shall round out the four greater angles; but for the lesser circle you shall take a diameter as long as two-thirds the width of the broader limb.

Or you may vary X thus: Let everything be left as before except the narrower limb, which at top you shall make more erect by one-half the breadth of the wider limb; and so the upper part of the letter shall be less and narrower than the lower, and shall have a different aspect, as is shown below.

[Ill.u.s.tration: X]

THE LETTER Y.

Y you shall achieve in the midst of its square, as far as its lower half is concerned, after the instructions before given for I; but its upper part you shall divide so that its. .h.i.ther limb shall contain two-thirds, and its farther one-third of the broad standard; and let them slope to either side so that produced they may touch the two angles a. and b.; and the greater circles, by which you are to round out their obtuse or greater angles, make of a diameter as great as a containing side of the square enclosed between the standard and the sides of the great square, as in T was shown; but the diameters of the circles which you apply to the lesser angles, make double the width of the broad standard, as below.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Y]

THE LETTER Z.

Z you shall make thus: Set upon either side, both beneath & beyond the angle a., two points e. & f., each at a distance of the tenth part of a. b.; so also, set two other points g. and h. both before and above the angle d. and with right lines join e. f. and g. h.; then draw your narrower transverse limb, beneath a. b. backwards as far as the angle b.; from thence draw your broad limb diagonally to c.; and then again a narrower one from c. to g.; and with your hand round out the two tips e.

and h.

Or make Z thus: Divide the square a. b. c. d. by the vertical line e. f.

and in this reduced s.p.a.ce construct the letter as before; but so that the two transverse limbs be cut short, above on the nigh side, and below on the far, by the vertical lines a. c. and e. f. respectively as below.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Z]

So likewise, in other fashion, can we make all the letters already drawn, on a scale of ninths, just as we have now drawn them on a scale of tenths; in just the same manner, according to the due proportion of each, in its own square, a. b. c. d., dividing them into nine, as just now into ten parts; & that this may be the better understood, I have chosen to append here letters of such fashion. Also these letters are to be made five parts high when written small & rapidly, by hand. In such writing the versals are made of the same proportion and form, but one-third larger than the ordinary letters of the writing.

[Ill.u.s.tration: A A A A B B B B C C C C D D D D]

[Ill.u.s.tration: E E F F G G G H H I I K K K L L]

[Ill.u.s.tration: M M M M N N N N O O P P P P]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Q Q Q R R R S S S T T T V V]

[Ill.u.s.tration: X X X Y Y Z Z Z]

DIRECTIONS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE TEXT OR QUADRATE LETTERS

The letters which are usually called "text," or quadrate, it was formerly customary so to write, although they are now imitated by the new art, as presently I shall show below. Although the alphabet begins with the writing of A, yet shall I (not needlessly) in the first place undertake to draw an I; because almost all the other letters are formed after this letter, although always something has to be added to it or taken away.

First make your I of equal squares, of which three are properly set one over the other; and the top of the top one, and the bottom of the bottom one, divide in two points, that is to say, into three equal parts: then set a square equal to the others in an oblique manner, so that its diagonal be vertical, and its angle on the first point of the top square. In this way, this oblique square shall extend with its angles more to the left than the right. Then produce upwards on either side, after the width of the superposed squares, right lines to meet the sides of the oblique set square. Next do below precisely as you did above, except that you must set the angle of the oblique square on the second point, that is, the one farthest to the right in the bottom of the lowest square; and let fall your lines on either side upon the transposed square: so will I be perfect; only above it draw with a fine pen a tiny in-crescent.

So shall you make N from two standards of this same I, set so that their angles at top and bottom touch; and in this manner the s.p.a.ce between the two shall be narrower than the breadth of either: also, you shall no longer put little crescents above them; you must make of the same length all the short letters throughout the alphabet.

In like manner make M of three standards, just as you made N of two.

R make as I, except only that at top you must set an equal square diagonally, to the right, so that angle touch angle. R you may make also in this fashion: below leave its foot as before, but above add two diagonal squares, which shall touch each other with their angles in the middle point of the vertical limb, and then produce upwards both sides of the latter to meet the diagonal square.

V is made in three ways. First let it be made simply, as N; only that in the farther limb, you shall omit at the top the diagonal square; and instead shall draw an oblique line, so that it may make two angles in this limb (produced) of which the farther shall be of the same height as that of the topmost angle of the diagonal square, & the higher angle of the same height as the angle nearest to it in the said square.

The second V, which we use at the beginning of a sentence, make thus: Draw the first limb as before for I; only, at the bottom, push the diagonal square a little further to the right, so that its. .h.i.ther angle does not project beyond the side of the vertical limb, but falls in the line of its descent. Then set the second limb to the right of this, and cut it off below by an oblique line, drawn from the lowest angle upwards to the right, as far as the middle point of the lowest of the three superposed squares.

Next make W (i. e., double V) just as you made V-simplex; only you shall set before it the standard limb of I.

B make as the second V-simplex; but in the first upright omit the diagonal square at the top, and set upon the three original squares three others similar, but the seventh one you shall cut off diagonally from its lower hither angle.

Likewise when your B so made is turned upside down, then it will be a Q.

X you shall construct from I. Append from top angle to the right a diagonally set square, as you did before in R; and at the bottom draw an acute tail to the left from the diagonal, and at the middle of the vertical limb describe a transverse, in such way that the former is cut before and aft by the latter's diagonal; let the hither and lower angle be terminated as far in front of the upright as would measure one-half of the cutting diagonal, which at top shall just touch the upright; but to the right let the transverse at top project to a point just below the angle of the oblique square; from thence downwards let it be cut off by an oblique line parallel to the anterior diagonal.

C you shall construct from I after this fashion: Remove the top diagonal square, & let lines be produced on either side to the proper height of the letter, and cut off the hither angle by a diagonal; then draw at top a broad transverse, projecting beyond the vertical to the right the width of the latter, and cut this off by a diagonal in such a way that it project below only half as far as above.