0.2 inch composition punches for Plantin (typeface series number: 110), font size 12. In an original wooden box and no suffix relating to the typeface is marked. Manufactured by Monotype Corporation.

A Monotype punch is made by tracing a pattern on a vertical pantograph machine. It is an engraved piece of hardened steel of a reverse-reading type character (letter, numeral or ornament) in relief from which the matrices are made. After cutting, the face of the punch was ground to the correct measurements denoted on the relevant chart. The punch was stamped into a piece of phosphor bronze that made a matrix from which type could be cast. Punches were made in standard sizes: 0.2" x 0.2", 0.4" x 0.4", 1" x 1", or 1" x 1.35". If a Monotype punch became damaged it could be replaced, identically, using the pattern.

Many typefounders have produced a version of Plantin. It is a roman with origins in the sixteenth century and named after the famous Antwerp printer, Christophe Plantin. However, it seems that he did not use the type, although his contemporaries used it in Frankfurt and Basle around 1570. The Monotype Corporation’s version of Plantin was developed by talented engineer Frank Hinman Pierpont (1860–1937). He was also the company’s Works Manager and the designer of a punch-cutting machine. He based the design for Plantin on artefacts found in the Plantin-Moretus Museum in Antwerp.

Plantin is a heavy face with a large x-height and sturdy serifs. Distinctive capital letters are the flat-topped ‘A’ and the splayed ‘M’. The two ‘V’ sections of ‘W’ cross, and there are serifs on all four upper points. The lowercase ‘a’ has a large bowl and the ‘t’ is narrow. The ‘j’ terminates in a pointed curve, and the main strokes of the curved letters, such as ‘b’, ‘d’, ‘o’ are shaded in an oblique manner. There are old style figures.

The standard weight of Plantin has an accompanying italic. The family comprises of a Titling, a Light face and Light italic, a Bold and Bold italic and a Bold condensed. The first size of Plantin Series 110 was released in 1913 for composition on the Monotype system. In total Monotype produced 25 sizes of this series. It was a bestseller for Monotype and has enjoyed enduring popularity as an all-purpose face.