Scripts: Elegant Lettering from Designs Golden Age by Steven Heller


Scripts: Elegant Lettering from Designs Golden Age
Title : Scripts: Elegant Lettering from Designs Golden Age
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : 0500515689
ISBN-10 : 9780500515686
Language : English
Format Type : Hardcover
Number of Pages : 352
Publication : First published May 1, 2011

From wedding announcements to IOUs, there are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of scripts—some “classic,” others eccentric. Derived from handwriting, these are typefaces that are stylized to suggest, imply, or symbolize certain traits linked to writing. Their fundamental characteristic is that all the letters, more or less, touch each other.


Scripts tend to fall in and out of fashion, but they are most definitely part of the typographic landscape today, and the more curious and distinctive they are, the better. Drawn from the Golden Age of Scripts, from the nineteenth to the mid-twentieth century, this is the first compilation of popular, rare, and forgotten scripts from the United States, Germany, France, England, and Italy.


Filled with examples from a broad spectrum of sources—advertising, street signs, invitations, type-specimen books, personal letters—the book is a delightful and invaluable trove of long-overlooked material.

Scripts: Elegant Lettering from Designs Golden Age Reviews

  • Ellen

    When I was little I developed a fascination with Holy Cards. I collected them like my brother collected baseball cards. Looking back I realize now it was more an indication of my obsession with design rather than a study of the saints. Everything about them was beautiful to me, especially the type setting on the back. How I longed to write with that kind of delicate flourish.

    What's the point of this story? None other than this book is a collection of script typefaces and is almost as beautiful as those old holy cards.

  • Rebecca

    This book is seriously beautiful, and unlike
    Just My Type: A Book about Fonts, almost 100% visual. I know scripts and fonts are not quite the same thing, but this would be a great gift for anyone who likes either, or just plain eye candy and ads from another era.

  • Greta

    This book was pure eye candy if you are a font enthusiast, if you enjoy lovely design, handwriting and vintage products and especially if you're fascinated by various cultures' (French, British, German, Italian, American) versions of those things.

  • Jane

    Lots of eye candy! Not only the scripts, but also the gorgeous ephemera they're printed on.

  • Jocelin

    There is nothing more perfect than the beautiful swirl of elegant script. This is a lost art form that will probably not exist in the next few years, except on computer fonts. It is such a shame.

  • Corina

    This book is an album of amazing ephemera lettering pieces.
    It doesn't contain much informational text but its one of the best sources of inspiration out there.
    I love all books by Louise Fili and S.Heller - they are a great source of inspiration for many graphic design projects

  • Eling

    Not a ton of information here, but what there is is great, and the photos/illustrations more than make up for it. Amazing collection of lettering & vintage ephemera. Gorgeous. I will be returning to this often.

  • Sam

    As advertised in terms of quality and depth.

  • RW Press

    A beautiful collection of script typography. Great for those days when inspiration is lacking.

  • Penny

    This is such a beautifully designed book. Its giving me a lot of inspiration for calligraphy ideas

  • Odoublegood

    beautiful to look at; ideas and examples from several countries and several eras

  • Nancy

    Drool. J'aime the French ones beaucoup.

  • Susan Bin

    this is the sexiest thing i have ever

  • Judy Egnew Ness

    Beautiful book with many excellent examples of advertising and formal use of each font.