Beaumont and Fletcher, Philaster, 1661 (A1r)

This title-page shows an impressive array of bracket styles, joining together both the two theaters and the two authors.

Beaumont and Fletcher, Philaster, 1661 (A1v)

On this verso of a title page, the publisher has included a list of his publications for sale.

Beaumont and Fletcher, Philaster, 1661 (A2v)

An advertisement for the publisher's books takes advantage of what would otherwise be blank space on the page.

Beaumont and Fletcher, Scornfull Lady, 1651 (B1r)

In the upper right corner of this page is an odd blank space that cuts off some words---probably the result of a misplaced frisket or a stray piece of paper that got between the blank sheet of paper and the inked type.

Behn, Widdow Ranter, 1690 (A1r)

In a style more typical of the late 17th century than earlier playbooks, this title page provides only a relatively short title and the barest of acting company and authorial information along with the imprint.

Behn, Widdow Ranter, 1690 (A4r)

This list of actors and roles uses a range of typographical techniques, including columns and typefaces, to present different categories of information.

Behn, Widdow Ranter, 1690 (A4v)

This list of items also sold by this playbook's publisher include other plays as well as novels, with some including the format and the price of the work.

Bible, English, 1611 (A1r)

The King James Bible uses a complex typography to signal which words or phrases are not from the source material but have been added in translation (those in roman type), printed notes in roman type for cross referencing between different books, printed notes in italic for translation notes, and headnotes for each chapter providing summaries to help with quick navigation.

Bible, Massachuset, 1663 (A1r)

Though not credited, several Indigenous people were involved in the translation and production of the book, including James Printer, the first Indigenous American to work in a print shop. Eliot believed the Masschusett people would be more receptive to conversion if it was presented in their own language. In this way, the Eliot Bible was a physical tool of colonialism: a way to overcome the language barrier so that Indigenous people could receive the colonizer’s values, but not vice versa. On this page, one of the fleurons in the lower right section of the headpiece is upside-down, perhaps an error made in haste.

Bible, Polyglot, 1657 (T1v)

An example of a "polyglot" Bible---a Bible printed in its earliest languages and translations. On this leaf you can see texts in Hebrew, Latin, Greek, and Syriac, each in their own place and separated by hand-drawn red ruling.