The Imprint, published from January to November 1913, was a periodical that featured many aspects of the printing industry. Among the editors of the publication were F. Ernest Jackson, an English lithographer who designed posters for the London Underground from 1913 - 1925, and the master calligrapher, Edward Johnston, who designed the san-serif Johnston typeface and the roundel used in the London Underground signage.
In the first issue there was a challenge put forth to printers and designers “Mr. Gordon Selfridge offers through The Imprint a prize of TEN GUINEAS for the best designed Letter Heading for his store.”
The images above are a selection of entries that appeared in the final issue of The Imprint from November 1913. The last image shown here was the winner.
“The Prize of Ten Guineas has been awarded to Messrs. Mutries, Ltd., 167 Strand, W.C. An enormous number of headings were received - some of which are reproduced in the following pages - and though many of them showed great dexterity, none were considered entirely suitable for the purpose. No further prizes have therefore been awarded.”
Thanks to our benefactor Jerry Buff, UWM Special Collections has all nine issues of The Imprint and will likely feature more gems from their pages in future posts.
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