There’s an old cemetery in Castine, Maine—a lovely coastal town with a surviving crop of stately American elms. Dating back into the 1700s, the cemetery”s headstones have the familiar old domed-tablet shape, some topped by winged skulls. Thanks to the Castine Historical Society, I got my hands on a couple of epitaph rubbings and modeled a typeface after the lost stone carving style peculiar to the time and place. Castine (the font) has a melancholy, wistful, nostalgic air—and is frankly just a little bit spooky. Its long, sharp serifs and slight uneveness recall simpler times when character meant more than precision. Castine has roman and italic styles.* (Check out the epitaphs.) $49 | Order  

*The OpenType release of Castine™ adds numerous ligatures, old-style and lining figures, and Central/Eastern European alphabets.

“Our 3rd and 4th graders are thrilled that their historical writing is going to look so authentic!
—S.E., Charlottesville VA

“Oh! I'm in loooove with this font! It's lovely, it's organic, it's real, it's got history & tradition. My designs are singing!”
—C.C., Palo Alto CA

“I think this font is amazing. It is incredibly beautiful and in my opinion looks very authentic.”
—E.H., Brookline MA

“Well done on preserving the old ways of writing—they wrote and spoke so much nicer than we do now.”
—A.K., Adelaide, S. Australia

“I have never encountered such fine and detailed work in a handwritten font before. I heartily applaud your attention to detail and historical accuracy.”
—J.W., Seattle WA

“[Douglass Pen is a] stupendous achievement!”
—A.B., Encino CA 3IP02301

“The Lamar Pen font is divine. We are using it on a novel set in the eighteenth century, and the author is ecstatic.”
—J.H., London, England