I collect coins and I see variations in the style of the digit one ("1") on coins and I would like to learn the correct terminology to discuss
the variations. Is there a good resource for font questions like this?
Two other styles I call "old style" and "new style" (based on the years
I've seen them used) but there must be standard names used by font
historians.
I see these styles (with variations) in both years and denominations of coins. (Note that the
example I used for the Roman style uses the "old style" in the date.)
There
are variations in other digits (open versus closed 4 for example), and
there are significant variations in other number systems (such as Arabic
digits), but currently I'm looking at the transition of styles for the
digit one.
Comments
The lettering on coins is rather a field belonging to epigraphy, that is (mainly) individually crafted hand-lettering in the mode of punch-cutting, engraving, stamping, carving or similar techniques.
The interesting thing about the digit 1 in epigraphy (works in stone, wood, metal; continental Europe) is, that its serifs tended to evolve into various peculiar exuberant or flourishing shapes, of which you may find reminiscences on coinage. I know of discussions where the term geschwänzte Eins (caudated One) has been used, but, apart from that, I did not came across any deeper approach into morphologic terminology of the phenomenon.
Caudated emphasizes the presence of a tail-like extension (also used for certain shapes of Q or R etc.). This Amsterdam house number features a 1 that may be described as caudated, but it does not have a bifurcated base. A tower clock face in Venice is another example of such a J-like 1 – here without ball terminal and top right serif.
Sometimes the cauda (more general: swash, flourish) only appears when the 1 is in initial position, but not when in medial or final position. Such a contextual variation can be found at the St. Joseph Church in Hamburg. Both 1s have a bifurcated base. Instead of an angled entry stroke, these numerals have a diamond-shaped top terminal (German: Quadrangel).
The 1 can additionally have a dot, see this tombstone from a Berlin cemetery. This dotted 1 from an inscription on a building in Künzelsau features an extreme flourish.
By the way, that loopy lc a once attracted my attention, on gravestones at the old Leipsic St John cemetery (always worth a visit). Note also the bifurcated top terminal of h.
The transition in coins happened over a long period. I see a large number of examples with a bifurcated base in the early 18th century, fewer in the second half, and many fewer in the early 19th century. The most recent example I've found are in coins from Bavaria. The 1 Heller and 1 Pfenning coins issued until 1835 used a bifurcated base in the year and the denomination, but the Heller and Pfenning coins issued from 1839 on used a flat base.