“The first simple writing tool was the human hand from which all other tools evolved. . . . The hand instructs the eye and the eye in turn corrects the hand which writes. So aesthetic ideas about lettering style grow out of the writing process. Cuneiform was developed by pressing a wedge-shaped reed into clay tablets, Roman capitals were shaped by the spatula and chisel. Papyrus and stylus were replaced by parchment and quill which enabled the clear distinction to be made between hair stokes and heavy strokes which characterizes typefaces in use today. . . . Cast type [printing] slowed down the process of change in the basic letter-forms as literacy spread. . . . Roman lettering became more precise while Black Letter became more lively and masterly. The copperplate technique used for reproducing the writing manuals of the Baroque period encouraged the contrast between thick and thin strokes in roman lettering. . . .
     Copying religious texts was a sacred task and form of prayer for the monks of the Middle Ages; this was expressed in textura with its sacred aura. The serene freethinking of the humanists is reflected in Ranaissance italic. The type designers of the 20th century also had definite aims and aesthetic ideals.”

—Albert Kapr, The Art of Lettering; The History, Anatomy, and Aesthetics of the Roman Letter Forms, 1983.