Joseph Blumenthal, New York printer and book designer, designed Emerson for his own Spiral Press. In 1931, he traveled to Germany to have Louis Hoell cut the punches, which were then cast by the Bauer foundry for hand composition. First known as Spiral and exclusive to the Press, the typeface was renamed Emerson when Monotype released it commercially, with a companion italic, for machine composition in 1935. Reynold Stone wrote that it “avoided the rigidity of a modern face and preserved some of the virtues of the classic Renaissance types.” Signature, cited its “open counters, absence of fine lines and sturdy, though not heavy serifs.” Monotype deemed it among the twenty classic faces.

Nonpareil Type offers Emerson in book, book italic, small caps, display roman & display italic. Single fonts are $49. Complete family pack is $199.