E.C. Davis, Ticket Agent, business card
Another fabulous piece of Victorian ephemera from the collection of Alan Mays, this time a business card by E.C. Davis, who, in addition to his day job of railroad ticket agent, was a collector of business cards himself.
Railroad Tickets
Less than Regular Rates.
E. C. Davis, Ticket Agent.
7 Weybosset St. – Providence, R. I.
Nearly opposite Post Office.
No passes handled.
The card features two ornate typefaces that were kindly identified by David Jasmund. Glyptic and Filigree were both designed by the prolific and imaginative Herman Ihlenburg for MacKellar, Smiths & Jordan, and patented in 1878 – exactly one month apart, on February 12 and March 12, respectively.
Talking about great monthly output: David Jonathan Ross just did a revival of Glyptic. He released his Glyptic DJR as the August 2022 installment to members of the Font of the Month Club.
Filigree is used with some of its many ornaments, but without the exuberant initials. The name in Glyptic is likewise framed by decorative pieces that were part of the font. The light italic is Venetian (Conner, 1870s). I haven’t been able to identify the sans and the roman.
