We’ve been standing down from foundry operations for a couple of weeks now, due to unrelenting heat. Prescott is in Arizona’s central highlands, and at 5400 ft elevation, we don’t often get temps over 90. But there’s been a record string of 100+ degree days, and that ain’t no kinda weather for typecasting! Then the Goodwin Fire struck 25 miles south of here. Our casterman T.H. lives down that way and was ordered to evacuate. As of today it’s still burning, but the army of firefighters has mostly gained control and it should all be over pretty soon.
We were able to complete one new project before all of the above; an example of the “Egyptian” faces that enjoyed great popularity in the mid-19th century. It’s cast from matrices in the Charlie Broad collection. He called it Egyptian Shaded Extended, but you won’t find it in any old specimen books. In researching it, the trail ultimately led to Dan Solo, who in the late 20th century created popular optical fonts from a multitude of type faces old and new. The evidence indicates that these mats were cut from Solo’s face named Galena. A lowercase is shown for it, but those mats were not cut, so we’re calling it Galena Title (24pt).
We’ll be back in production when conditions permit, and keep on delivering the good stuff. Meanwhile, come July 20, Pack Your Box With Five Dozen Liquor Jugs and head to California for the 2017 APA Wayzgoose at the International Printing Museum! It’s open to all friends of letterpress. Skyline will be there presenting a hands-on Typecasting Seminar and of course peddling all manner of shiny new type at the Swap Meet. Everything you need to know is online at www.apawayzgoose.com. (BTW we have an extra bunk at Motel 6 available—send an email if you’d like to roomshare.) See you there!