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Plantin

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description Plantin Overview

Plantin is a serif typeface designed by Frank Hinman Pierpont and released by the Monotype Corporation in 1913. The design is a scholarly revival of 16th-century French Renaissance types originally used by the printer Christophe Plantin, whose artifacts are preserved in the Plantin-Moretus Museum in Antwerp. Characterized by its tall x-height and clean legibility, the typeface became a foundational model for 20th-century newspaper fonts. It is heavily utilized for continuous text in books and academic publishing.

help Plantin FAQ

What is the history behind the Plantin typeface?

Plantin is a Monotype revival released in 1913 that was directly based on 16th-century types. Its historical roots trace back to the printing materials archived in the Plantin-Moretus Museum in Antwerp.

Did the Plantin font inspire any other famous typefaces?

Yes, the proportions of the Plantin typeface directly influenced the creation of Stanley Morison's Times New Roman. Morison used Plantin as the structural baseline before thickening the strokes for newspaper printing.

Where can you see the original type that inspired Plantin?

The original punches and matrices that inspired the 1913 Monotype revival are housed in the Plantin-Moretus Museum in Antwerp. This museum preserves the historic printing operations of Christophe Plantin from the 1500s.

Is the Plantin font still used today?

Yes, due to its robust and readable old-style serif letterforms, Plantin is still frequently used in modern book design. It is also currently part of the Monotype library and available on most digital font platforms.

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