A Cross Inspired Typeface

Carl Shank • July 24, 2025

A Cross Inspired Typeface. CARE Typography has been able to craft a typeface of Christian crosses from the history of the Christian Church throughout the world. We named it CrossesTwo to simply distinguish it from other writings. It is a FREE font, available to all who ask. Christian crosses are used widely in churches, on top of church buildings, on bibles, in heraldry, in personal jewelry, on hilltops, and elsewhere as an attestation or other symbol of Christianity. Crosses are a prominent feature of Christian cemeteries, either carved on gravestones or as sculpted stelae. Because of this, planting small crosses is sometimes used in countries of Christian culture to mark the site of fatal accidents. Not far from where we are, there is a huge Christian cross built by a Virginia church marking not merely the site of the church building, but announcing the central message of the Bible there.


Christian crosses are powerful symbols that convey theological meaning, cultural identity, and historical legacy. Over centuries, many distinct styles of the cross have developed across Christian traditions, regions, and periods. Some of the most prominent crosses are the traditional Latin Cross (Letter "L" in CrossesTwo typeface), where the vertical beam extends beyond the horizontal cross bar, the Greek Cross, a cross with four arms of equal length (Letter "V" in the typeface), the Orthodox (Eastern) Cross (Letter small "o" in typeface), with three horizontal bars — the top for the inscription (INRI), the middle for the hands, and the slanted bottom bar for the footrest, the Celtic Cross (Letter "1" in the typeface), which is a Latin cross with a circular ring connecting the arms. The traditional Latin cross symbolizes the crucifixion of Jesus, with the empty cross signaling that He rose again from the dead, and is used in Western Christianity, Roman Catholic, Protestant, and many global Christian contexts.


The Greek Cross is common in early Christian art and Byzantine Christianity and used in Eastern Orthodox, Byzantine, and early Christian monuments and mosaics.  In the Orthodox Eastern Cross the slanted bar represents the two thieves crucified beside Christ — one rose to heaven, the other descended. It is used in Russian, Greek, Serbian, and other Eastern Orthodox Churches. The Celtic Cross had its origins in early medieval Ireland and Britain, associated with Celtic Christianity. It has been used in Irish Christianity, Anglican, some Protestant denominations, and decorative gravestones.


The Coptic Cross (Letter "5" in the typeface and note Letter "e" where the Ethiopian Cross is a close match to the new Coptic Cross) is a a variation with intricate, symmetrical designs — sometimes with equal arms or surrounded by circles. It is used by Christians in Ethiopia and Eritrea. The Jerusalem Cross (Letter "j" in the typeface) has a large central cross surrounded by four smaller Greek crosses, used by the Crusades in the eleventh century, is the Heraldic symbol of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and used by Franciscans and in modern Jerusalem-related contexts. The Russian Orthodox Cross (Letter "o" in the typeface) Features three horizontal bars — top (INRI), middle (hands), and slanted bottom (feet). The Tau Cross (Letters "T" and "t" in the typeface) is shaped like the Greek letter tau and has been adopted by St. Anthony and Franciscans to symbolize Old Testament sacrifices and God's protection (Ezekiel 9:4).


St. Andrew's Cross (Saltire) (Letter "s" in the typeface) is an X-shaped cross from the tradition that Andrew the Apostle was crucified on a diagonal cross. It is the symbol of Scotland and the Eastern Orthodox Church. The Papal Cross (Letter "P" in the typeface) is a vertical staff with three horizontal bars, decreasing in length, representing the pope’s triple office: bishop of Rome, patriarch of the West, and successor of Peter. The Cross of Lorraine (Letter "l" in the typeface) is a vertical bar crossed by two horizontal bars — the lower one longer, has been used in Western Europe during the Crusades and was a symbol of French resistance in World War 2. The Patriarchal Cross (Letter "p" in the typeface) is similar to the Cross of Lorraine, but primarily associated with ecclesiastical hierarchy, and used by archbishops and patriarchs in Eastern and Western churches.


Each cross reflects regional theological emphases, cultural aesthetics, and historical developments. While the Latin Cross remains the universal Christian emblem, the variety in form reveals Christianity's global and historical richness. Note the CrossesTwo typeface below with the description of these and many other crosses. (Credit for the opening image is given to Matteo Corti - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Muiredach_s_Cross.jpg, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1393567)

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Theology of Type (1): Printers Marks Expanded

By Carl Shank • October 25, 2025
Theology of Type . What does typography have to do with theology? Actually, quite a lot. It is significant that early typography had strong religious roots, especially Christian European roots. Many of these typographers and printers believed and lived from a worldview filled with the Divine. The history of typography operates out of a viewpoint of creativity that goes back to an overriding faith in God. Early Printers' Marks reveal a strong Christian theological stance. Printers’ Marks are symbols or logos that have been used as trademarks by early printers, starting in the fifteenth century. Before the introduction of copyrights, printers’ marks legitimized a printer’s work. Copyright legislation would not be introduced until the eighteenth century. Such marks usually appeared on the last page of a printed work. The first known mark can be found on the Mainz Psalter, produced by Johann Fust and Peter Schoeffer in 1457. This mark depicted two shields bearing a saltire, a diagonal cross and a chevron surrounded by three stars. At the outset these were marks of the printer, but the practice was gradually adopted by publishers. In early works a statement at the end listed the date of completion and the location. Sometimes the name of the printer or scribe or their initials were included. In printing and typography this is called a colophon, derived from the Greek word κολοφών, meaning summit, or finishing touch. The printer’s mark was added and gradually moved to the title page of the book. The earliest marks were simple designs produced by using a woodcut stamp. Maggie Patton in her excellent introduction to printers’ marks notes that “the design of a printer’s mark used visual puns, wordplay or sometimes a rebus, a puzzle combining illustrations and letters to depict a motto or printer’s initials. Sacred symbols, the cross and the orb, real and mythical animals, heraldic symbols, and scientific instruments were used in thousands of combinations. The sixteenth century was the highpoint for printers’ marks, when lavish illustrations incorporating a printer’s mark decorated title pages. Many famous images and symbols originate from printers’ marks. The design used by Venetian printer Aldus Manutius depicts a dolphin wrapped around an anchor. The printer’s mark used by French printer Robert Estienne shows a man standing by an olive tree, symbolising the tree of knowledge. Christophe Plantin, in Antwerp, used a pair of compasses held by a hand extending from a bank of clouds, the compass points signifying labour and constancy.” [1]

Calligraphy & Typography

By Carl Shank • September 29, 2025
Calligraphy & Typography. Calligraphy, the art of beautiful handwriting, has a long and rich history that spans cultures, religions, and centuries. It developed not only as a means of communication but also as a form of artistic expression, religious devotion, and cultural preservation. While typography is not calligraphy, with much of type carefully structured, straight-backed and neatly drawn and focused on lettering for printing readability, both art forms involve visual expression of language. Both focus on the shape, proportion and beauty of letters. Both reflect religious, historical and cultural influences on writing styles. Both are used for artistic and decorative purposes in design, and much of type has been greatly influenced by calligraphic styles. Yet, they differ significantly in their methods, purposes and tools. Calligraphy is the art of hand drawn, beautiful writing, while typography focuses on the design and arrangement of type letters for print or digital use. Calligraphy is created manually with pens, brushes, or quills, while type is created digitally or mechanically using typefaces. Traditional tools used in calligraphy include dip pens, brushes and ink, while type is formed with digital or physical lettering. Calligraphy is highly expressive and free flowing, while type is usually uniform and consistent across all characters. Calligraphy is usually done for decorative and personal use, while typography is often constructed and used for mass communication in books, websites and signage. Mediums for calligraphy include paper, parchment, walls, while typography focuses on print and digital media. Yet, the roots of much of type comes from the wealth of history and styling offered by calligraphy. CARE Typography has been able with Font Lab's tools like Fontographer, to translate fine calligraphy into usable typefaces, even for the modern market tastes. The fine art of calligraphy is highlighted in the background to this post in the 2018 calligraphic rendering of the Scripture, "Well done, good and faithful servant" (Matthew 25:25a) by Calligraphy for Christ ( https://www.calligraphyforchrist.com/ ). Such beautiful religious typographic pieces actually begin not with the Gutenberg era in 1450 but with the ancient Chinese.
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