“In 1498 [Albrecht] D’rer published Latin and German editions of The Apocalypse illustrated by his monumental sequence of fifteen woodcuts. . . . D’rer’s Apocalypse has an unprecedented emotional power and graphic expressiveness. . . . At age twenty-seven, D’rer earned reknown throughout Europe. . . .
His first book [as an author], Underweisung der Messung mit dem Zirckel unt Richtscheyt (A Course in the Art of Measurement with Compass and Ruler), [was published] in 1525. . . . The third chapter explains the application of geometry to architecture, decoration, engineering, and letterforms. D’rer’s beautifully proportioned Roman capitals, with clear instructions for their composition, contributed significantly to the evolution of alphabet design. Relating each letter to the square, D’rer worked out a construction method using a one-to ten ratio of the heavy stroke width to height. This is the approximate proportion of the Trajan alphabet, but D’rer did not base his designs on any single source. Recognizing the value of art and perception as well as geometry, he advised his readers that certain construction faults could only be corrected by a sensitive eye and trained hand.”

—Phil Meggs & Alston Purvis, Meggs’ History of Graphic Design, 2006.