LudwigType

Daphne

Daphne is one of Georg Salden's first typefaces, designed in 1970. It features a large number of calligraphic swashes that can be added to individual characters. The digital version uses OpenType features to apply these swashes. Since many swashes fit different characters, the possible combinations are endless. Alternate and full swash characters provide even more design options, making this a unique tool for designers with a calligraphic instinct.

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Single Font
€ 59.00

Daphne contains numerous calligraphic swashes, which can be added to the particular base glyph using OpenType feature. Alternate glyphs and complete swash letters supplement the character set. See a complete overview of the included OpenType features or download the Daphne User Guide PDF.

To access the swashes, you type either a sequence of asterisks before a character or a sequence of plus signs after a character. Swashes are also available for many accented and other language-specific characters.

The same feature allows you to access the alternate glyphs by typing a # in front of the particular character. It is also possible to combine all of the features.

Daphne was developed from a text written with a broad nib pen (top). Georg Salden writes:

I was asked take on a contract for a hat shop in Dusseldorf in the 1960s. As an opening advert I used a text written with the broad nib pen which turned out to be the basis for »Daphne«. It was all about the bold italic line with large swashes. This font was accepted by Berthold for its Staromat. The various swashes could be copied onto other letters, depending on taste. This provided hundreds of possibilities. Although I gave exact instructions as to how these swashes were to be used, the production placed them wrong, some even upside down. This was one of the reasons why I decided to publish my fonts independently.

Original drawings by Georg Salden for photosetting, 1970. More on our Blog.