The Type Archive is a collection of artefacts representing the legacy of type founding in England, whose famous type foundries and composing systems supplied the world with type in over 300 languages. The Archive was founded in 1992 and is located in Stockwell, South London, England.
Overview
The Type Archive is the final repository of many of the original forms, punches, matrices and patterns of some of the most famous and successful metal and wood type foundries in the world. It also holds a historic collection of presses. It is estimated that the collections include between five and eleven million artefacts. The Archive is unique in holding examples of successive generations of technology used for type design and manufacture, from hand foundry and machine composition, through wood type, to photography and film setting. In addition to holding its collections, the archive is a working factory that manufactures matrices for letterpress printing. The Museum has become a valuable educational resource for many colleges, and helps to meet the demand for an educational and experimental type workshop. According to the Museum's website:
Collections
The Museum’s major collections include:
The Stephenson Blake Collection of English foundry type with industrial and hand casting equipment. In their long trading history Stephenson Blake & Company acquired many of the other famous-name English type foundries. The remaining material associated with these companies now resides at the Type Archive.
The Robert DeLittle wood type manufactory — the last specialist English wood type manufacturer is a superb resource in this vital, engaging and under-researched area of type design.
Entities
The Type Archive involves the following entities: the Type Museum Trust, which is a Registered Charity 1009198 and a Registered Museum 1101 and its subsidiary The Type Museum Limited Registered Company 3677895.
Location
Access
A small team of staff and volunteers work at the Type Archive on a regular basis. Some are directly involved in the manufacture and provision of Monotype matrices and spare parts, and are employed by Monotype Hot Metal Ltd. The company has never been without orders for matrices and machine parts since it began trading from the Stockwell site. Uniquely skilled volunteers also maintain and operate the historic presses and Monotype casting machinery. Access to the Type Archive collections in recent years has been hampered by a shortage of experienced and qualified volunteers who are familiar with the Archive's holdings, but this issue is currently being addressed and it is hoped that provision can be made for researchers to have limited access to the collections in the future. Much of the material held at Stockwell is unique and irreplaceable, so procedures must be in place to protect the holdings from theft or damage. Access will be provided only on days when a volunteer is available to locate material and supervise its use. A major exhibition showcasing the work of the late Berthold Wolpe, artist, designer, calligrapher and typographer opened in September 2017, and although scheduled to end in October it was extended until 4 December due to popular demand. Around 1000 visitors viewed the material on display. The Wolpe exhibition, arranged in conjunction with Monotype Imaging, which provided much of the funding for the event, is hoped to be the first of a series of regular opportunities for the public to access the wealth of unique, historic material held at Stockwell. An exhibition featuring the calligraphic work of Icelandic artist and handwriting expert, Gunnlaugur SE Briem, opened in June 2018, closing in mid-July that year. Further exhibitions and a regular series of Type Archive Talks are planned. The Covid-19 pandemic and the unrelated death of founder Susan Shaw made access particularly difficult for staff, volunteers and researchers from March 2020. As of mid-July, the Type Archive is slowly returning to normal, with volunteers back on site on a regular basis.
