Between 1961 and 1962, the legendary typographer Hermann Zapf developed the hot type Hunt Roman exclusively for the famous Hunt Botanical Library of the Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Zapf’s American friend, Jack W. Stauffacher, a professor for typography, facilitated the project. We may consider the Hunt Roman as a prototype for exclusive fonts, which became an alternative concept in a time when Helvetica and Univers were universal.
Ferdinand Ulrich was a visiting student in Pittsburgh, when he discovered the legendary font in the hot-metal setting workshop of the university three years ago. His intensive research in archives and collections, and his stay with Jack W. Stauffacher in San Francisco, a correspondence with Hermann Zapf and – of course – his focus on the font in a setting and printing context have led to a comprehensive study, which reveals the branched and maze-like genealogy of this extraordinary typefont.
