Baskerville vs Didot

Didot was influenced by Baskerville.

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 — Didot (Didone serif); shown in Playfair Display, a close match (OFL)

Didot

Firmin Didot's Parisian Didone of the 1780s–90s — even more severe and hairline-fine than Bodoni, with razor-thin unbracketed serifs. The chic, frosty voice of French fashion typography.

  • Extreme stem-to-hairline contrast
  • Strictly vertical axis of stress
  • Flat, razor-thin, unbracketed hairline serifs
  • Abrupt serif-to-stem joins with little bracketing
  • Precise, geometric, aristocratic proportions
Full Didot guide →

At a glance

BaskervilleDidot
Era17571790s
DisciplineTypographyTypography
RegionEngland, BirminghamFrance, Paris
FamilySerifSerif
Formal traitstransitional, bracketed-serif, vertical-stress, high-contrastdidone, high-contrast, vertical-stress, unbracketed

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