What It Looks Like:
 |
| Picture found here. |
"The first Caslon typeface was designed in 1722. It was similar to Dutch Fell types by Voskens, and also by the typefaces cut by Van Dyck, another Dutchman. The Caslon types were used throughout the British Empire, including British North America. The decayed appearance common in a lot of early American printing is often thought to be caused by the oxidation that resulted from long exposure to seawater during the transport of metal type from England to America. Caslon was used extensively, and perhaps most famously in the printing of the U.S. Declaration of Independence." (Source #1)
"The popularity of William Caslon's faces has led to a wide range of typefaces bearing his name. Adobe Caslon, redrawn by Carol Twombly in 1990 from Caslon's 1738 specimens, is a sensitive reconstruction that shows the influence of Dutch old-style faces but also some characteristics of the Transitional forms that were to follow." (Source #2)
 |
| Picture found here. |
How You Can Design With It: "Caslon is sometimes considered a great universal typeface. There was even a common rule of thumb among printers and typesetters, 'When in doubt, use Caslon.' It’s a versatile typeface that can be used equally well in headings or in body copy. The wide variety of weights and styles available make it even more versatile.
"Caslon can be used for virtually any kind of typesetting, from body copy to headlines, and is quite legible at small sizes." (Source #1)
"Long favored for book work, Caslon remains a text face of unassertive grace, legible in its individual forms and readable in the rhythmic relationships between letters. [...] The face should normally be used at text sizes [as] the Caslon Foundry produced an accompanying titling face, which formed the basis for Matthew Carter's Big Caslon." (Source #2)
 |
| Picture found here. |
Where You Can Get It: You can purchase the Adobe Caslon typefaces at MyFonts. Or you can download other versions of the typeface at FontYukle, FontSpace, and DaFont.
Descriptive Terms for It: Body copy, Garalde, headlines, legible, and versatile.
Sources:
- #1 - http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2011/08/the-most-popular-fonts-used-by-designers/
- #2 - The Complete Typographer: A Manual for Designing with Type" by Will Hill, 2nd Edition, p. 79
- #3 - The Complete Typographer: A Manual for Designing with Type" by Will Hill, 2nd Edition, p. 72
