Honorary membership card, FC Lourdais

FC Lourdais is a French rugby union club from Lourdes in Hautes-Pyrénées, formed in 1911. This honorary membership card for Monsieur Laurent Cami for the season 1926/1927 depicts the club’s name in a typeface that originated under the name Ancient Gothic.

Designed by William W. Jackson for the Keystone in Philadelphia, Ancient Gothic was patented March 17, 1891. The all-caps design features letters with open top and solid bottom halves. On the card, it was overprinted in red in a solid style, for a two-color effect. The same design was offered in Germany (by Krebs as Allegro) and in Italy (by Augusta as Beatrice). Some version also found its way to southwestern France.

The sticker by the Fédération Française de Rugby (F.F.R.) features the bold condensed style of Cheltenham. The years at the top are in some Clarendon variety. “Membre honoraire” is in inclined caps from a typeface with tiny serifs. It’s a version of Copperplate Gothic, possibly FTF’s Antiques Litho No. 4. The other typefaces are yet unidentified.