John Baskerville the Writing Master

Baskerville was, originally, both a teacher of writing and a carver of headstones, the main evidence for his skills is a slate that hangs in the Library of Birmingham advertising Baskerville’s services in writing and letter-carving. In the archives there are also examples of Baskerville’s handwriting, which survive in letters to friends and acquaintances. These letters have previously been examined simply for the light they shed on his relationships and business. Baskerville’s hand, however, has neither been scrutinised for its style nor assessed in regard to his typeface. This chapter considers both Baskerville’s handwriting and his lettering and presents the evidence for his relationship with the writing masters of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. In doing so, it sheds new light on the antecedents of Baskerville’s typeface and demonstrates, in particular, how his handwriting influenced the design of his printing type.