In my book  The Rise and Fall of the Printers’ International Specimen Exchange  (Oak Knoll Press, 2012), I showed in 4-color-process a specimen of two color analyses from Volume IX of the Exchange: one of the stars, the other of alkali and alkaline earth metals. Only the first three volumes of the Exchange included notes on the specimens; details about later specimens were difficult to come by, and for most of those I listed only contributor names as they appeared in the volumes. [Read more]

The Kelmscott/Goudy Press, the Albion iron hand press No. 6551 once owned by William Morris in England and Frederic W. Goudy in New York, will be auctioned by Christie’s on December 6 in New York City. [Read more]

Specimens of Chromatic Wood Type, Borders, etc. Manufactured by Wm. H. Page & Co., Greeneville, Conn. : The Co., 1874. 655.241 P133sp

Rob Roy Kelly wrote that Wm. H. Page’s Specimens of Chromatic Wood Type, Borders, Etc., 1874 “has been rightfully acclaimed as containing the most superb wood type specimens ever printed.” This tome of 100 plates featured Page’s fantastic character designs, intricate borders and tint blocks, precisely printed in up to 7 colors each—sometimes with metallic inks, and always with interesting overprinted hues. About a dozen copies exist in libraries nationwide, and it is this rarity that encouraged curators at RIT Cary Graphic Arts Collection to have RIT’s copy digitally photographed. [Read more]

The 2013 Lieberman Lecture was delivered in San Francisco on July 20 by David Pankow, who has recently retired from all his many duties at Rochester Institute of Technology. The well-attended lecture was co-sponsored by the San Francisco Public Library and was held in the Koret Auditorium. John McBride and Kathleen Burch made all the arrangements on behalf of the Northern California Chapter.  [Read more]