The oldest set of type in Hamilton’s collection is also one of the most elaborately decorated.

This 7L set of Wells Hand-Engraved Ornamented type was received at Hamilton in 2005.

Thought to date from the 1850s, this is the oldest documented set of wood type in the museum's collection. 

This set of wood type has survived two fires. 

At the time of the first fire, the type was located in the print shop of a newspaper in Cleveland, OH. While the type survived, the building was destroyed. 

The type survived a second fire while in the shop of a private collector on the east coast. Some of the sorts bear visible singeing.

A vintage print in the Digital Collection of the New York Public Library features this type, including the sorts that are missing from the Hamilton set: A, I, and X.

Printer and designer Paul Brown produced an edition of 4x6" proofs of this type set during his term as Hamilton’s Visiting Artist from 2009⎻2012.

Hamilton is the proud and fortunate current steward of this beautifully-made "surviver" set of type!