Notes On How To Write Calligraphy Alphabets

Uncial

Uncial has a formal, serene appearance enlivened by the rhythmic alternation of narrow and rounded letters and the ripple of the short ascenders and descenders.

Your pen angle should be 0-15 degrees (ie pointing straight up the page). Rotate the page anticlockwise before writing, so your wrist is not cocked too steeply for comfort, or use a specially-designed nib. If you're using a quill, it helps to cut it so the left corner forms an acute angle.

Uncial letterforms are around 4 nib-widths high with another nib-width above and below for short ascenders and descenders. Allow a good half-line at least of space between lines of script.
Uncial is characterised by its strongly rounded, graceful and powerful aspect. It does not slant. Letters should be carefully spaced. Serifs are straight-topped and their underside curls smoothly into the letter.

Some twisting and lifting of the nib is useful to form parts of 'A' and 'N' and the thin diagonal strokes of 'V', 'W', 'X' and 'Y'. A nib-twist can also be used to create 'drooping' serifs on the branches of 'C', 'E', 'F', 'G' and 'S'. Often, minuscule forms are mixed into uncial from 'half-uncial', which is historically a different script of similar appearance which has strong Celtic associations. The variant letters are generally 'a', 'b', 'd', 'g' and 't'.

Gothic

Gothic is densely textured, prickly-looking and highly ornamental. Its minuscules are angular, with blocky serifs; their form is based on a small rectangle.

Gothic majuscules are usually elaborate 'doubled' forms of the letter, decorated with hairlines and hackles (hooked shapes on the back of the letter), and often written in vermilion. Use the left point of the nib to draw hairlines.

Your pen angle should remain fairly constant, at around 45 degrees. All gothic letters are upright, not slanting. Minuscules should be 4.5-5 nib-widths high; ascenders and descenders are 6-7 nib-widths for all letters except 'd' and 't', which lie in between the x-height and the ascender height. Descenders take another 2 nib-widths below the line.

Some traditional 'blackletter' Gothic scripts are very compact and regular, almost to the point of illegibility; on the other hand, Gothic doesn't look good with too much space between the letters. Use it for titles, announcements etc rather than long body text.


Italic

Italic is an elegant, almost cursive calligraphy alphabet. Because it is very easy on the eye, it is suitable for writing out decorative texts such as poems, certificates, wedding invitations etc. Fluency, good proportions and regularity are the primary characteristics of the script.

Hold the pen at approximately 45 degrees. Italic minuscules are 5 nib-widths high and based on a lozenge-shape. Ascenders and descenders are comparatively long -- another 2 nib-widths above the x-height. They may be formed with serifs or extended a little forwards, parallel with the direction of writing. All letters slope approximately 15 degrees to the right.

Italic majuscules are often left as simple forms a little shorter than the full height of the ascenders, but may also be given long, decorative 'swash' strokes for ornamental use.

Roundhand

A good roundhand consists of very regular, well-proportioned, well-spaced letterforms. Clarity and simplicity are the key qualities. Of all the calligraphy alphabets, this is probably the easiest to read, and so is very suitable for longer texts such as passages of prose, books of poetry, diary entries etc.

Your nib should be held at an angle of around 30 degrees; the x-height is 4.5 nib-widths. Ascenders are 7 nib-widths high, ie 2.5 above the x-height, and descenders go 3 nib-widths below the line.

Allow plenty of white space inside and between your letters; don't cramp them. The rounded shapes of 'a', 'b', 'c' etc are quite circular, and strokes are confident and absolutely vertical. Serifs are bold and elegant and letters ending in a downstroke finish with a rounded upflick. Roundhand majuscules are generously proportioned and a full 7 nib-widths high.

To see examples of each of these hands, visit this calligraphy alphabets page and scroll about half-way down.

Harriet Shead is an amateur calligrapher and enjoys experimenting with letter-forms among her other interests, which are mostly to do with arts, literature and healthy living. She is particularly enamored of Gothic alphabets.

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