These four sets are based on the elegant and beautiful work of the German graphic designer Emil Rudolf Weiss.

The initials were made to complement Weiss’ text fonts and were cast in the 1920s by the Bauer Type Foundry of Frankfurt. Also known as Weiss Initials Series I, II, II Bold, and III, the lettering has a distinct antique quality.

These extremely hard-to-find digital versions look superb in large sizes and remain huge favorites among book designers.