I. CALLIGRAPHY
"THE ART OF BEAUTIFUL WRITING"
A. History
• Egyptians wrote using hieroglyphics, made up of symbols and
pictures: 3000 B.C.
• Cuneiform - * first real writing - used in Mesopotamia 2500 B.C. –
marks made in clay stood for sounds; together these made words.
• Chinese script 1500 B.C. used over 1,000 characters; each character
stood for one complete idea.
•
Greeks: 500 B.C. adapted cuneiform, added vowels.
• Romans 100 A.D. adapted Greek script to produce Roman Capitals,
from which all western European alphabets descended. Roman capitals were
chiseled into stone.

Uncials: 6th c. AD a rounded hand used by the Catholic Church.
 Carolingian hand, or alphabet, was developed in France in 9th century.
This used small letters known as miniscules as well as capitals or
uppercase letters.
•
Chancery Script was developed in Italy in 15th. century.
• Gothic Script, also known as Old English, descended from the
Carolingian hand. Narrow, angular, more letters per line; almost illegible.
• Italic hand, is an informal style considered the best alphabet for
everyday use.
Two main families of letters: Roman alphabets (thick and thin; pens were
hollow reeds); Gothic (angular, tight, same width): first typeface when
printing press developed in Germany in 1450.
B. Vocabulary Terms for Calligraphy
•
ascender: the part of the letter which extends above the writing line
(f,b,d,h,k,t)
•
descender: the part of the letter which extends below the writing line
(f,g,j,p,q,y)
•
the counter: the inside shape of a letter
•
the nib: the pen point, or sharpened point of a quill pen
•
the pen angle: the angle at which the broad edge of the pen is held in
relation to the writing line.
•
serifs: the short lines extending from the upper and lower ends of the
letters' strokes
•
a versal: very large, decorative capital which often marks a new
paragraph.
Carolingian
ROMAN
GOTHIC
ITALIC
Your projects to be signed off as completed
Your name: _________________________
Assignments
(#1-5 by Feb. 8)
Uncial hand
(# of points)
GET THIS CHART SIGNED OFF AND THEN TURN IT IN!
Italic hand
1. 2 each of
capitals (10)
2. 2 each of
lowercase
(10)
3. Your name
(10)
X
X
4. A quote or
saying (10)
X
5. A verse,
poem, or
stanza of a
song (10)
An Illumination
with the theme
‘love’. Versal must
be Gothic; rest
can be any hand.
Border & color
required. On
parchment paper
at least 8x10”.
Rough draft in
pencil due Feb.
8th.
(10)
X
Versal
Final due
Feb.10th.(40)
Test
PORTFOLIO
REFLECTION
Vocabulary and
history Feb. 4
(20)
Gothic Hand
Feb. 16th
Border
Color inks or
paints
Illumination Description
Design and execute a page uniting text and calligraphy with
ornamentation and illustration, using parchment paper or another highquality paper of your choice.
The text‘s theme: love
Include: a) Ornamentation or illustration, using colored inks or paint.
: b) a border
The project will be graded according to the following rubric:
1. quality of calligraphy and alphabet chosen;
2. quality of layout and use of design principles of balance, unity, and
rhythm/repetition;
3. craftsmanship and neatness;
4. display: the work must be mounted and ready for hanging.
5. Commitment: meeting all requirements and deadline
6. 40 points –
portfolio project 1 -