Numbers
Hoefler & Co · Jonathan Hoefler · 2006
A set of fifteen numeral-only fonts drawn from playing cards, currency, railcars, subway signs and other vernacular sources.
About
A collection of fifteen numeral fonts by Jonathan Hoefler, designed for Pentagram's 2006 calendar and released by H&Co as a single family called Numbers. Each font draws on a specific vernacular source: Deuce from playing cards, Greenback from US currency, Depot from vintage railcars, Redbird from New York subway signs, Strasse from European enamel signs, Valuta from Hungarian banknotes, and so on through Bayside, Claimcheck, Delancey, Dividend, Indicia, Premium, Prospekt, Revenue and Trafalgar. The fonts revive a nineteenth-century practice where typefounders shipped numerals separately for tables, calendars and ledgers, and read as a kit of decorative tools for editorial, packaging and wayfinding rather than a working text family.
Classification
H&Co describe Numbers as a collection of fifteen original numeral fonts, designed for Pentagram's 2006 calendar. Each font is built on a specific source of vernacular numbering, from playing cards and currency to railcars and street signs, rather than printing-type history.