Baskerville vs Bodoni

Bodoni was influenced by Baskerville — pushed Baskerville's contrast to the limit.

Type specimen — Baskerville (Transitional serif); shown in Libre Baskerville (OFL)

Baskerville

John Baskerville's 1757 transitional serif — crisper and higher in contrast than the old-styles, with a near-vertical stress and sparkling sharp serifs, printed on his own glossy paper with blacker ink.

  • Higher contrast than old-style, near-vertical stress
  • Crisp, sharply finished bracketed serifs
  • Open lowercase 'g' with an unclosed lower loop
  • Flourished tail on the capital 'Q'
  • Teardrop terminals on a, c, f
Full Baskerville guide →
Type specimen — Bodoni (Didone serif); shown in Libre Bodoni (OFL)

Bodoni

Giambattista Bodoni's late-eighteenth-century Didone — extreme contrast, a strictly vertical axis, and flat hairline serifs that 'dazzle' on the page. The face of luxury, fashion, and Empire elegance.

  • Extreme contrast between heavy stems and hairline thins
  • Strictly vertical axis of stress
  • Flat, thin, unbracketed serifs
  • Ball terminals on a, c, f, r
  • Crisp, vertical, geometric proportions
Full Bodoni guide →

At a glance

BaskervilleBodoni
Era17571790s
DisciplineTypographyTypography
RegionEngland, BirminghamItaly, Parma
FamilySerifSerif
Formal traitstransitional, bracketed-serif, vertical-stress, high-contrastdidone, high-contrast, vertical-stress, unbracketed

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