PFEFFER MEDIÆVAL is the idealised image of a Carolingian minuscule, the script of Charlemagne, on which our modern Antiqua has been modelled.

In the young kingdoms that had been founded on formerly Roman territory during the migration period, several so called Post-Roman scripts emerged up to the 8th century. These were already minuscule scripts using ascenders and descenders. Although all of them were derived from uncial, half uncial and new Roman cursive, they differed quite a lot regionally. Moreover, they were difficult to read, not least due to their extensive use of ligatures. Beginning from the end of the the 8th century a standardisation took place in the course of the Carolingian Renaissance. Advocated by Charlemagne and with important collaboration of Alcuin of York​—​who had responded to a call to Charlemagne’s palace school in Aachen​—​an easy to read script was developed that, beginning from the 9th century, quickly spread across the frankish scriptoria. This Carolingian minuscule became the common book and administrative script in the Carolingian empire and all over western Europe except Ireland, until it was in turn replaced by the Gothic minuscule script.

In England, where the new script took a very belated foothold, the insular minuscule script (one of the above mentioned Post-Roman scripts) was in coeval use up to the 12th century. This insular hand script primarily differs from the continental one in the shape of a few letters.

PFEFFER MEDIÆVAL may be used freely for non commercial purposes. For commercial use, please contact me.

Robert Pfeffer
Kontakt@Robert-Pfeffer.net
http://robert-pfeffer.net