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MLC Floyd A. Holes Modified Roman

$59.99

A digital Modified Roman font based on the Floyd A. Holes Modified Roman metal lettering plate. Both OpenType and TrueType font formats included with the download.

SKU: MLC-ModifiedRoman-FAH Category: Tag:

Description

Floyd A. Holes Modifed Roman Headstone Alphabet

* Only the basic character set is shown here. For a sample character map see the MLC Font Project page.

Classification

Monument Roman: Modified

History & Designer

The exact date of the creation of this alphabet is unknown at this time, but was likely created in the late 1930s. The alphabet was produced at various sizes on copper lettering plates by the Floyd A. Holes Company of Bedford, Ohio and saw most of its use between the 1940s and 1960s. The designer of the Modified Roman alphabet on the plates is unknown, but the system of spacing was created by Egon Weiss and printed in his book The Design of Lettering in 1932. Weiss’ Lombardic and Roman style alphabets in his book were used as references for other plates by the Floyd Holes company, but he did not print a Modified Roman.

FAH Modified Roman headstone lettering plate

FAH Modified Roman headstone lettering plate No. 1

Geometry:

The width of the stems are about 1/9 their height. The arms are half the thickness of the stems.

Distinguishing Features

Slightly rounded corners. ‘M’ tapers in, unlike most Modified Roman alphabets. ‘U’ contains corners at its base prior to curving. ‘R’ has an elongated and curved leg typical of Monument Roman alphabets, but has a slightly softer curve and greater length. ‘G’ contains a spur at the base of the throat. The numeral 8 is made up of two ellipses, rather than the usual contiguous “figure-eight”. Numerals 6 and 9 round inward unlike most Monument Romans, and contain a serif. Numeral 4 contains a wavy crossbar, unique among monument fonts, and seen elsewhere only on the Floyd A. Holes Lombardic lettering plate.

FAH Modified Roman font alternate 'R'

Alternate ‘R’ created by a stencil cutter. Included in the MLC font as an OpenType alternate.

Characters

The plate contained no punctuation, and as such, all punctuation and extra characters have been created by using other monument industry Roman alphabets as a guide. The ampersand was created by combining the reversed 3 and the crossbar of the 4. Alternate versions of the ampersand and dash have been included from a prior version of the font created in 2009. An alternate ‘R’ has also been included, taken from inscriptions in the cemetery where the plate was used, and some creative liberty was exercised by the stencil cutter. As is common with MLC Modified Roman fonts, an alternate ‘W’ is included created from overlapping two ‘V’s. This ‘W’ was not included as a part of the original alphabet but was added by the MLC.