MONOGRAMS AND MARKS
From the Book CENTAUR LETTERS (part four)
author: Rastko Ćirić

Since ancient times the artists and craftsmen (the two occupations were not separated at the time) signed their works with specially combined initials.

Separated from a text, the connected letters, most often initials of Christian names or institutions' names, can be used as a mark of that person or institution. Such connections are NOT ligatures, although they are very similar, because they are not a letter character, but form a unique visual whole.

One of the oldest monograms is the old Christian mark with the initials of Jesus Christ.

Albrecht Dürer, the famous German artist from the 15th century, built in his well-known monogram into each of his graphic prints or paintings in diverse ways.

The monogram of German goldsmith Hans Rohr from the end of the 18th century, engraved into the silver spoon.

The trade mark designed for the Srpska Knjizevna Zadruga (The Serbian Book Society) by famous poet Jovan Jovanovic Zmaj, is a typical monogram – initial mark from the 19th century, made of intricately interlaced letters.

In those days it was question of rich families' prestige, with the rulers being the forerunners, to have their monograms embroider on handkerchiefs, engraved on jewelry, especially on seal rings, engraved on furniture, put on the house facades and curved by bars in metal fences.

The three reproduced monograms are taken from the book “Monograms and Ciphers” published in 1906 by certain A. Turbaine, which contains all ready-made interlaced combinations of alphabet letters to the joy of many rich housewives.

This is the monogram made by Milos Ciric in 1962 for the Serbian nobel-prize writer Ivo Andric, and the initial logo for the Graficki Kolektiv Gallery, made in the same year and by the same designer. In contrast to monograms, which are formal connection of several letters, logo (trade mark) is made of several elements contracted into a simple graphic image and containing the whole “story” within themselves.

In this example, the letters G and K form a stylized figure of mythical gryphon which, when holding two printing tools in its hands, symbolizes printing. Earlier, this Gallery had a pictorial presentation of gryphon, with letters GK written under it as its logo. In this version, both concepts are joined into one whole.

Initial logo VW for the “VolksWagen” Company, was designed during the Thirties.

An interesting Italian monogram made in 1992 combines a free-hand stroke with traditional typography.

And, in the end, the monogramic signum of the author of this text made of joined Cyrillic initials R. Ć.

LITERATURE AND SOURCES

Viktor Novak Latinska paleografija, Beograd, 1980.
Petar Đorđić Istorija srpske ćirilice, Beograd, 1971.
Petar Đorđić Staroslovenski jezik, Beograd, 1975.
J. Stipišić Pomoćne povijesne znanosti u teoriji i praksi, Zagreb 1985.
Vuk St. Karadžić Prvi srpski bukvar, Beč, 1827, Beograd, 1978.
Franjo Mesaroš Tipografsko oblikovanje, Zagreb, 1975.
Razić, Sjangven, Lungjuen Kineski jezik, Beograd, 1983.
Herman Degering Lettering, New York, 1965.
Alfred Fairbank A Book of Scripts, Faber, 1977.
A. Sorbelli Dalla Scrittura alla Stampa
A. and I. Tubaro Lettering, Milano 1992.
Oldrih Hlavsa Typographia, Prag, 1975.
Stjepan Fileki Tradicionalna ćirilica u kompjuteru, Beograd, 1995.
Miloš Ćirić Grafička identifikacija 1961-1981, Beograd, 1982.
Ernst Lehner Alphabets and Ornaments, Dover, 1952.
A. A. Turbayne Monograms & Ciphers, 1906 (Dover, 1968)
Frederick Lambert Letter Forms, Dover 1972
Rob Roy Kelly Wood Type Alphabets, Dover, 1977.
Dan X. Solo 3D and Shaded Alphabets, Dover, 1982.
Dan X. Solo Classic Roman Alphabets, Dover, 1983.
Dan X. Solo Condensed Alphabets, Dover, 1986.
Dan X. Solo Circus Alphabets, Dover, 1989.
Dan X. Solo Decorative Display Alphabets, Dover, 1990.
Marc Drogin Medieval Calligraphy, Dover, 1980.
Jovan Ćirilov @, Nin, 25. 2. 1999.
Rastko Ćirić Slova kentauri, Politikin Zabavnik, 17. 9. 1999.
www.adobe.com/type/topics/theampersand.html
www.p22.com/terminal/ligature.html
www.p22.com/terminal/atsign.html
www.will-harris.com/ligatures.html
www.student.nada.kth.se/~f96-lla/@.html
www.me-tf.postech.ac.kr/tex/fontfaq/cf_16.html
www.csmonitor.com/durable/1997/12/08/home/home.2.html
www.cslab.vt.edu/~lmbyrd/arts/ampersand.html
whatis.com/atsign.htm

WHAT ARE LIGATURES?
CENTAUR LETTERS (part one)

END OR ET
CENTAUR LETTERS (part two)

THE MONKEY STRUDEL
CENTAUR LETTERS (part three)