Uncial font

Uncial font is like Gaelic font. Gaelic fonts are Irish but not all Uncials are Irish. Uncial hands were a style of writing used during the late Roman Empire, from ca. 200 to ca. 800.Since the Roman Empire was so broad, Uncial hands differ according to region. There were even Greek Uncials, for instance. There were also half Uncial letter, which are  later evolved into the “Insular” hands used in Ireland and the British Isles.

Scribes in the western part of continental Europe seem to have stopped writing book text with Uncial-related styles after Charlemagne’s writing reforms, ca. 800. However, Uncial has remained popular for headlines, titles, certificates, and display usage ever since.

As Ireland was neither part of the Roman Empire nor Charlemagne’s kingdom, the Uncial tradition seems to have never really stopped. Also, the years between ca. 400 and ca. 800 A.D. may represent some golden age for the Irish, although I must admit that my Irish history is a bit shaky. In any event, Uncial-looking typefaces are still widely used in Ireland, especially when dealing with the Irish language.

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Calligraphy

While I was searching something for calligraphy, I found the material set of calligraphy.

It is very interesting and I never heard this words. Let’s learn them…

• Shitajiki: Black, soft mat. It provides a comfortable, soft surface.
• Bunchin: Metal stick to weight down the paper during writing.
• Hanshi: Special, thin calligraphy paper.
• Fude: Brush. There is a larger brush for writing the main characters and a smaller one for writing the artist’s name. The small brush, however, can be used for the characters, too.
• Suzuri: Heavy black container for the ink.
• Sumi: Solid black material that must be rubbed in water in the suzuri to produce the black ink which is then used for writing. Of course, “instant ink” in bottles is also available.

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