Can you describe the design process you went through – did you come up with several different routes, or follow one from the beginning? Which letters did you start with?

Guided by the historical research, we began by setting the name in various letterforms, including those from alphabets by Carington Bowles (1775) and William Hollins (1813). We established that the work of the writing master and engraver George Bickam (1684–1758) was the most fitting starting point. Using alphabets from his Universal Penman (1733) we drew new letterforms digitally, which we then tested at the real size (about 650mm) and modified to ensure every detail worked on the ship – in this respect the new lettering departs from its source in many details and is very much tailored for Victory.



What were the particular challenges you found in creating lettering which needed to be so historically accurate?

Accuracy here is very relative as there aren’t any traces left of the original setting of the name, and the English vernacular model is more a general idea than a specific set of forms. So while we can’t say for certain this is what the original lettering looked like, we can certainly say it wouldn’t be based on a Trajan model and it should feel more vigorous and lively in spirit.



The most debated point between us was the shape of the ‘R’ – whether to go with a flat leg that worked with the horizontal stretch of the transom or to go for the more curly legged and characteristic English vernacular model.

