Roman letters
Robert L. Cook, Huger Elliott and A. S. Hill favored classic Roman capitals for memorials. Their articles advocate a design tradition; other pages in the trade literature document block letters, blackletter and ornamental forms. (LM PDF pp.90-99; GMB16 PDF pp.521-523, 669)
Cook and Elliott’s models
Section titled “Cook and Elliott’s models”Cook preferred a sturdy antique Roman for granite over the delicate forms he associated with Renaissance marble. Elliott used the square and circle to compare letter widths, taking O as a reference rather than making every letter equally wide. These models are starting points for reading their alphabets, not the only historically valid Roman forms. (LM PDF p.91; GMB16 PDF pp.521-522)
Stroke and serif relationships
Section titled “Stroke and serif relationships”Both described contrasting heavy and light strokes. Cook favored a vertical axis in round letters; Elliott accepted diagonal stress when C, G, O and Q remained consistent. Elliott also related serif size and direction to the surrounding space. (LM PDF p.94; GMB16 PDF pp.522-523)
| Form | Elliott’s comparison |
|---|---|
| B | Upper bowl smaller than lower. |
| E | Upper arm shorter than lower; middle arm above center. |
| H | Crossbar slightly above center. |
| S and X | Upper part smaller than lower. |
These selected features describe Elliott’s model, not a complete alphabet specification. (GMB16 PDF pp.522-523)
Letters, figures and readers
Section titled “Letters, figures and readers”Cook and Elliott discouraged antique V for U in contemporary inscriptions because it could interfere with reading. Cook adapted figures associated with Georgian lettering; Elliott described figures through circles and straight lines. Their treatment of J, U, W and numerals shows a revival adapted to contemporary names and dates. (LM PDF p.99; GMB16 PDF pp.594-595)
Optical corrections explains apparent height and weight. Monumental alphabets locates the plates.
See also
Section titled “See also”- Optical corrections in lettering
- Letter spacing
- Gothic and Old English letters
- Monumental alphabets
- Wyckoff Colonial (a digitized Colonial Roman)
Sources
Section titled “Sources”- LM p.87–99 (Robert L. Cook).
- GMB16 p.521–523, 594–595 (Huger Elliott); GMB16 p.669 (A. S. Hill).
Source and editorial credit
Section titled “Source and editorial credit”LM publication record · GMB16 publication record.
This is a modern AI-assisted editorial summary. Named contributors are credited with their specific statements above; unidentified contributors remain unverified. Publication editors are not assumed to have written individual articles. Page references use the private scan; source access, edition and rights limitations are recorded in the linked register.