Herzog August Bibliothek Wolfenbüttel | Joran Proot & Nikolaus Weichselbaumer
In recent years, micro- and mesotypography have benefited considerably from new methodological
approaches, particularly quantitative and AI-based methods. This conference aims to foster
dialogue between methodological and subject specialists.
Our broad understanding of typography includes printing and ornamentation, but not layout.
Although layout is part of typography, it is excluded here as it is part of macrotypography, while our
focus is on micro- and mesotypography. In addition, we would also like to include non-printed
scripts insofar as they are relevant to research into printed typefaces. The conference will
emphasise the application of qualitative and quantitative methods, including digital humanities
approaches, to global writing systems.
Possible topics include:
• Identification of typefaces
• Identification of handwritten scripts
• The relationship between fonts and scripts
• Reconstruction of character sets
• Development of printing types for non-Latin scripts
• Analysis of microtypographic details for print identification
• Decoding of implicit workshop practices
• Presentation of new methods and tools
• Micro- and macrotypographic phenomena in the introduction of printing to non-Latin scripts
(e.g., Greek, Arabic)
• Methodological challenges and open research questions

The conference will take place at the Herzog August Library in Wolfenbüttel, Germany, from
Wednesday 24 to Friday 26 September 2025. The conference languages are German and English.
Please submit abstracts (about 300 words) by 31 January 2025 to [email protected] and
[email protected]. Travel costs may be reimbursed upon request, as far as the budget allows.