Taking shape

Perhaps because the letter G was a latecomer to the alphabet — all the other letterforms were firmly fixed by 8BC — the G remained an amorphous character. Formal inscriptions aside, there were many ‘acceptable’ letter G variants, often within the same carving or manuscript: variously named the the ‘square G’ (the classic ‘Trajan’ form), the ‘involute G’ (the final swing curls in on itself in a spiral), the ‘bearded G’ (the final swing terminates in a curve underneath the letter) and, a rare and curious C/G ‘offspring’ form. More of that later.

G variants in early roman letterforms, as redrawn by David Jones, lettering artist, 1895-1974. David Jones and the Art of Lettering, Nicolete Gray, Motif No 7, 1961.

In at No.7

The new G moved into seventh place in the alphabet, displacing the Z, for which there was no need. The Z was later resurrected at the end of the alphabet. In formal roman inscriptions, it most often looked like this Imperial Majescule G, first painted by a signwriter onto the stone, then carved with a hammer and chisel. Here, Father Catich’s imagined brushstroke G next to his redrawn Trajan G from The origin of the serif, 1968.