Yun Xie
@yunxie.bsky.social
Passion is a finite research resource. History is at once art and science. Art history and book history, history of knowledge. Hongkong Type matrices. Non Latin typography and typefoundery. PhDing @ UGent. ERC: PhiSci.
Reposted by Yun Xie
#OTD 2 yrs ago!
"The Digitization of a Large Latin-Chinese Dictionary"
A guest post by Christopher Francese at Dickinson College. He writes on the digitization of the Lexicon Magnum Latino-Sinicum, linked below
#tbt
digitalorientalist.com/2023/11/21/t...
"The Digitization of a Large Latin-Chinese Dictionary"
A guest post by Christopher Francese at Dickinson College. He writes on the digitization of the Lexicon Magnum Latino-Sinicum, linked below
#tbt
digitalorientalist.com/2023/11/21/t...
The Digitization of a Large Latin-Chinese Dictionary
This is a guest post by Christopher Francese, Asbury J. Clarke Professor of Classical Studies, Dickinson College francese@dickinson.edu In 2016 I started assembling a team of students, scholars, an…
digitalorientalist.com
November 20, 2025 at 12:09 PM
#OTD 2 yrs ago!
"The Digitization of a Large Latin-Chinese Dictionary"
A guest post by Christopher Francese at Dickinson College. He writes on the digitization of the Lexicon Magnum Latino-Sinicum, linked below
#tbt
digitalorientalist.com/2023/11/21/t...
"The Digitization of a Large Latin-Chinese Dictionary"
A guest post by Christopher Francese at Dickinson College. He writes on the digitization of the Lexicon Magnum Latino-Sinicum, linked below
#tbt
digitalorientalist.com/2023/11/21/t...
Good lettering stands on its own! 😎
November 17, 2025 at 5:44 PM
Good lettering stands on its own! 😎
Reposted by Yun Xie
My first exposure to these aviform 🐦 Armenian letters was through this splendid plate in Andreas Müller's Alphabeta ac notae (published in 1703, but with a lot of material that probably dates from the 1680s). 🤓
(Pics < www.digitale-sammlungen.de/de/view/bsb1...)
(Pics < www.digitale-sammlungen.de/de/view/bsb1...)
November 16, 2025 at 6:20 PM
My first exposure to these aviform 🐦 Armenian letters was through this splendid plate in Andreas Müller's Alphabeta ac notae (published in 1703, but with a lot of material that probably dates from the 1680s). 🤓
(Pics < www.digitale-sammlungen.de/de/view/bsb1...)
(Pics < www.digitale-sammlungen.de/de/view/bsb1...)
“国学=屁说” “国学=粪学”
During his 1.5 hr talk, Joshua Fogel generously treated us to Wu Zhihui吴稚晖’s snarky lines about guoxue国学……😎
During his 1.5 hr talk, Joshua Fogel generously treated us to Wu Zhihui吴稚晖’s snarky lines about guoxue国学……😎
November 15, 2025 at 8:52 AM
“国学=屁说” “国学=粪学”
During his 1.5 hr talk, Joshua Fogel generously treated us to Wu Zhihui吴稚晖’s snarky lines about guoxue国学……😎
During his 1.5 hr talk, Joshua Fogel generously treated us to Wu Zhihui吴稚晖’s snarky lines about guoxue国学……😎
Typographical term “kerning” went viral in an unexpected way……
November 13, 2025 at 3:37 PM
Typographical term “kerning” went viral in an unexpected way……
I am on the way to Würzburg on the anniversary of the Bishop of Würzburg’s death……
Friedrich von Wirsberg, Bishop of Würzburg
Who died #otd 12 Nov 1573
Print by Jost Amman
(British Museum)
Who died #otd 12 Nov 1573
Print by Jost Amman
(British Museum)
November 12, 2025 at 9:08 AM
I am on the way to Würzburg on the anniversary of the Bishop of Würzburg’s death……
Reposted by Yun Xie
The font would appear to be English 111 Adagio CE, available for the highly presidential sum of just $39.75 USD
Note "The" is not kerned correctly
(see perspective-corrected still for reference)
Note "The" is not kerned correctly
(see perspective-corrected still for reference)
November 12, 2025 at 5:11 AM
The font would appear to be English 111 Adagio CE, available for the highly presidential sum of just $39.75 USD
Note "The" is not kerned correctly
(see perspective-corrected still for reference)
Note "The" is not kerned correctly
(see perspective-corrected still for reference)
Reposted by Yun Xie
Delighted that our Decolonizing Chinese History Roundtable is now available in Chinese translation as a book! Thanks to the wonderful team at Uli books and for my brilliant co-authors @jimmillward.bsky.social @catielila.bsky.social Taomo Zhou, and James Evans
www.bookrep.com.tw?md=gwindex&c...
www.bookrep.com.tw?md=gwindex&c...
November 6, 2025 at 8:50 PM
Delighted that our Decolonizing Chinese History Roundtable is now available in Chinese translation as a book! Thanks to the wonderful team at Uli books and for my brilliant co-authors @jimmillward.bsky.social @catielila.bsky.social Taomo Zhou, and James Evans
www.bookrep.com.tw?md=gwindex&c...
www.bookrep.com.tw?md=gwindex&c...
Vincent van Gogh made this lithography of “potato eaters” by himself and sent it to his brother Theo and some friends as a prior announcement of the painting.
1885.
Litho technique allowed artists to express their own artistic style in a mass production way without compromising the quality.
1885.
Litho technique allowed artists to express their own artistic style in a mass production way without compromising the quality.
November 6, 2025 at 12:18 PM
Vincent van Gogh made this lithography of “potato eaters” by himself and sent it to his brother Theo and some friends as a prior announcement of the painting.
1885.
Litho technique allowed artists to express their own artistic style in a mass production way without compromising the quality.
1885.
Litho technique allowed artists to express their own artistic style in a mass production way without compromising the quality.
David Beckham has been knighted. Great news for him. But the British Royal household could choose a better design for the medal box, rather than the sans-serif font and some slightly dubious foil stamping…..
November 5, 2025 at 11:52 AM
David Beckham has been knighted. Great news for him. But the British Royal household could choose a better design for the medal box, rather than the sans-serif font and some slightly dubious foil stamping…..
Tian Wang’s Talisman, ward off disasters and banish evil spirits. From recent purchases,
perfect for Halloween.
perfect for Halloween.
October 31, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Tian Wang’s Talisman, ward off disasters and banish evil spirits. From recent purchases,
perfect for Halloween.
perfect for Halloween.
Reposted by Yun Xie
Wanna hear a scary story?
The first American vampire was Black.
Seriously.
78 years before Dracula appeared in American literature, there was "The Black Vampyre" by Uriah D'Arcy.
It was written in 1819 as an antislavery critique and the effect the Haitian Revolution had on the States
The first American vampire was Black.
Seriously.
78 years before Dracula appeared in American literature, there was "The Black Vampyre" by Uriah D'Arcy.
It was written in 1819 as an antislavery critique and the effect the Haitian Revolution had on the States
October 30, 2025 at 11:15 PM
Wanna hear a scary story?
The first American vampire was Black.
Seriously.
78 years before Dracula appeared in American literature, there was "The Black Vampyre" by Uriah D'Arcy.
It was written in 1819 as an antislavery critique and the effect the Haitian Revolution had on the States
The first American vampire was Black.
Seriously.
78 years before Dracula appeared in American literature, there was "The Black Vampyre" by Uriah D'Arcy.
It was written in 1819 as an antislavery critique and the effect the Haitian Revolution had on the States
At a printing art fair, I found a Chinese woodblock, carved on both sides双面雕刻. Combine elements of folk religion and medicine: at the top are Guanyin zuolian 观音座莲 and Huguo jiangjun 护国将军 (referring to Nezha哪吒). Below seem to be some medical prescriptions, such as Siwu Huadu Tang 四物化毒汤 and so on.
October 26, 2025 at 8:13 AM
At a printing art fair, I found a Chinese woodblock, carved on both sides双面雕刻. Combine elements of folk religion and medicine: at the top are Guanyin zuolian 观音座莲 and Huguo jiangjun 护国将军 (referring to Nezha哪吒). Below seem to be some medical prescriptions, such as Siwu Huadu Tang 四物化毒汤 and so on.
In the special collections exhibition at the KU Leuven Library, two 18th-century silk prints: one a graduation thesis and the other a congratulatory poem, both common subjects for silk printing at the time. @drkarrschmidt.bsky.social
October 25, 2025 at 10:44 AM
In the special collections exhibition at the KU Leuven Library, two 18th-century silk prints: one a graduation thesis and the other a congratulatory poem, both common subjects for silk printing at the time. @drkarrschmidt.bsky.social
Reposted by Yun Xie
In colonial India, William Herschel introduced fingerprinting in the 1850s to authenticate identity on legal documents.
Influenced by colonial ideologies, his experiments laid the foundations for modern forensic identification, codifying the hand as a scientific marker of identity.
#handoftheweek
Influenced by colonial ideologies, his experiments laid the foundations for modern forensic identification, codifying the hand as a scientific marker of identity.
#handoftheweek
October 24, 2025 at 10:52 AM
In colonial India, William Herschel introduced fingerprinting in the 1850s to authenticate identity on legal documents.
Influenced by colonial ideologies, his experiments laid the foundations for modern forensic identification, codifying the hand as a scientific marker of identity.
#handoftheweek
Influenced by colonial ideologies, his experiments laid the foundations for modern forensic identification, codifying the hand as a scientific marker of identity.
#handoftheweek
Reposted by Yun Xie
Just a 1399 unicorn watermark from a paper manufacturer from Valencia to make your day. Friends of #paperhistory know that these paper sheets of around 1400 are among the first sheets of European paper to appear on the market. European #bookhistory was a different game afterwards. #skystorians
October 25, 2025 at 6:40 AM
Just a 1399 unicorn watermark from a paper manufacturer from Valencia to make your day. Friends of #paperhistory know that these paper sheets of around 1400 are among the first sheets of European paper to appear on the market. European #bookhistory was a different game afterwards. #skystorians
In the metal-type era, the way European punchcutters tracked the flow of straight lines, curves, ascenders, and descenders is strikingly similar to Chinese calligraphy’s sense of structure and strokes, so called 间架结构.
October 22, 2025 at 10:27 AM
In the metal-type era, the way European punchcutters tracked the flow of straight lines, curves, ascenders, and descenders is strikingly similar to Chinese calligraphy’s sense of structure and strokes, so called 间架结构.
Reposted by Yun Xie
Join us for the online launch of The People of Print: Eighteenth-Century England, a collection of biographical essays about lesser-known figures from 18C book history!
The event is free to attend but booking is essential: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/book-launc...
#18thC #18c #18thCentury #BookHistory
The event is free to attend but booking is essential: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/book-launc...
#18thC #18c #18thCentury #BookHistory
October 21, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Join us for the online launch of The People of Print: Eighteenth-Century England, a collection of biographical essays about lesser-known figures from 18C book history!
The event is free to attend but booking is essential: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/book-launc...
#18thC #18c #18thCentury #BookHistory
The event is free to attend but booking is essential: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/book-launc...
#18thC #18c #18thCentury #BookHistory
Reposted by Yun Xie
As part of the Small Performances Project, we are digitising Baskerville’s 18th-century printing punches using Photometric Stereo Photography. This technique captures surface details by varying light angles, revealing tool marks and engraving depth to reconstruct the typographic process in 3D!
September 19, 2025 at 1:06 PM
As part of the Small Performances Project, we are digitising Baskerville’s 18th-century printing punches using Photometric Stereo Photography. This technique captures surface details by varying light angles, revealing tool marks and engraving depth to reconstruct the typographic process in 3D!
Find a new flavor chips at toko, not sure if I should try: stir fried razor clams!
October 15, 2025 at 4:25 PM
Find a new flavor chips at toko, not sure if I should try: stir fried razor clams!
K-pop star, Blackpink’s Jennie just launched her own brand Korean font, Zen Serif.
October 15, 2025 at 2:28 PM
K-pop star, Blackpink’s Jennie just launched her own brand Korean font, Zen Serif.
Little joy of archival research: spotting typos!
大平—> 太平
原木—>原本
It is a 19c Brill’s catalog for clients, supposed to be their best quality…..
大平—> 太平
原木—>原本
It is a 19c Brill’s catalog for clients, supposed to be their best quality…..
October 15, 2025 at 12:06 PM
Little joy of archival research: spotting typos!
大平—> 太平
原木—>原本
It is a 19c Brill’s catalog for clients, supposed to be their best quality…..
大平—> 太平
原木—>原本
It is a 19c Brill’s catalog for clients, supposed to be their best quality…..
At Leiden University Library’s Special Collections, came across a lithograph portrait of missionary Karl Gutzlaff with his Chinese name 郭实猎. Printed by Wed. P. Barbiers in Zwolle.
"Wed" was a common label in the printing trade when a widow continued her late husband’s business.
"Wed" was a common label in the printing trade when a widow continued her late husband’s business.
October 15, 2025 at 10:10 AM
At Leiden University Library’s Special Collections, came across a lithograph portrait of missionary Karl Gutzlaff with his Chinese name 郭实猎. Printed by Wed. P. Barbiers in Zwolle.
"Wed" was a common label in the printing trade when a widow continued her late husband’s business.
"Wed" was a common label in the printing trade when a widow continued her late husband’s business.
Reposted by Yun Xie
Seasonal greetings for both the #bookhistory and #digitalhistory folks: a keyboard waffle iron. 🗃️
December 8, 2023 at 2:35 PM
Seasonal greetings for both the #bookhistory and #digitalhistory folks: a keyboard waffle iron. 🗃️
A fine made book (1919) about Amsterdam printer Spin uses different symbolic en-têtes (by Dirk Nijland) for each chapter, e.g.:
Half raised curtain: story begins;
Rise of lithography;
Impact of Belgian independence;
Rail and shipping networks shaping book trade.
Half raised curtain: story begins;
Rise of lithography;
Impact of Belgian independence;
Rail and shipping networks shaping book trade.
October 6, 2025 at 10:00 PM
A fine made book (1919) about Amsterdam printer Spin uses different symbolic en-têtes (by Dirk Nijland) for each chapter, e.g.:
Half raised curtain: story begins;
Rise of lithography;
Impact of Belgian independence;
Rail and shipping networks shaping book trade.
Half raised curtain: story begins;
Rise of lithography;
Impact of Belgian independence;
Rail and shipping networks shaping book trade.