Davida in use

Designed by Louis Minott and named after his son David. Winner of a VGC competition in 1965 and released as Davida Bold. Possibly inspired by Victorian-era designs such as Ringlet and Hogarth. Minott received $1,000, but no royalties [OH no]. Alternates for ‘AEF 123456789 &$’ [VGC specimen]. Aliases include Silva [Mecanorma 1970], Garth (by Facsimile Fonts) [Berthold 1974], and Da Vinci Bold [Compugraphic 1976]. Carried by Formatt as Davida Bold [Formatt 1974] and later as Darling [Formatt 1978]. See also Yardley. English Type No. 28 is an open and shaded wood type adaptation by Diamond Wooden Type Works. Most digital versions lack the alternates but Bitstream’s uses different forms than the others. Peter Wiegel’s open-source Sylvar (2016) has the alternates included in Mecanorma’s Silva, but is of poor quality. Nick Sherman’s faithful and complete digitization Minott Davida is unreleased. See also Casserole, Ohno’s “resuscitation” from 2023.