The Crossbar

The letter “A” is essentially the same form as “V” but inverted — the only major difference being the crossbar and with it come the little tweaks needed for higher refinement of the letter. Because the crossbar adds density to the letter and reduces its inner white space the interior of the letter should be drawn slightly wider. The crossbar itself is usually positioned below the visual and mathematical center of the letter with it being thinner than the lighter diagonal of the letter(in normal cases the left stem) in some typefaces while thicker in other. Several cases of higher thickness of the crossbar that stand out are in Venetian and Transitional forms.

A good rule of thumb will be to remember that typefaces with a tilted axis have a thinner crossbar while typefaces with a vertical axis a thicker one — Slab Serifs especially.

The Serifs

The serifs in this letter are mainly drawn as two types — as an extension of the strokes with some form of a transition or as a horizontal “slab” in Slab Serifs. The upper serif is generally non-existent except in several typefaces. The statement that there are mainly two types for drawing the serifs applies here with full force. Another interesting detail is that because the letter itself is wide the serifs on the outside sometimes are lightly reduced so there are less visible gaps between this and other letters.