“In 1890, William Morris produced the Golden
Type for the Kelmscott Press. In 1893, Joseph W. Phinney
designed Jenson
Oldstyle for the Dickinson Typefoundry (American Type
Founders), which was based on Morris’ Golden Type. Both these types
were modeled on the mid-fifteenth-century letters of the
Renaissance printer Nicolas Jenson. In 1977, Colin
Brignall redrew the ATF Jenson series for Letraset, and renamed the
design Italia.” — MyFonts
Letraset catalogs give a 1975 date for the three weights, with a
Medium Condensed (not digital) added in 1979. The Letraset version
was announced in 1976, see U&lc Vol. 3 No. 1 and 2.
Licensed to ITC in 1977 [U&lc More…
“In 1890, William Morris produced the Golden Type for the Kelmscott Press. In 1893, Joseph W. Phinney designed Jenson Oldstyle for the Dickinson Typefoundry (American Type Founders), which was based on Morris’ Golden Type. Both these types were modeled on the mid-fifteenth-century letters of the Renaissance printer Nicolas Jenson. In 1977, Colin Brignall redrew the ATF Jenson series for Letraset, and renamed the design Italia.” — MyFonts
Letraset catalogs give a 1975 date for the three weights, with a Medium Condensed (not digital) added in 1979. The Letraset version was announced in 1976, see U&lc Vol. 3 No. 1 and 2. Licensed to ITC in 1977 [U&lc Vol. 4 No. 1]. Sold by Transfertech as Isadora.
