Figure 129
Ornaments from Bodoni’s Fregi e Majuscole, Parma
From HathiTrust (facsimile scans)
1771
In this we are able to see what…ornaments Bodoni used in the earlier part of his career. They are (as he says in his very “worth-while” preface) a derivation from Fournier, but lack that precision which Bodoni embodied so characteristically in his nineteenth century types. They exhibit, however, his admiration for Fournier, whom he copied in a flattering but barefaced manner. Granted that the most agreeable features of the book are copied, this “specimen” of 1771 is one of the most tasteful and charming volumes of its kind in existence. Each page is surrounded with borders, of which scarcely one is bad, or scarcely two alike. The types are old style, but their delicacy shows current tendencies; and this is specially true of the italic.… Bodoni’s versions have less colour and warmth and a certain Italian twist to them—of those shown, all but two (305 and 325) are copies or adaptations.