Linotype Office Alliance

The Trump Mediaeval Office family is designed after the model of the original serif family produced by Georg Trump in 1954. Trump released this typeface through the C. E. Weber type foundry in Stuttgart, and Linotype quickly cut the face for mechanical composition. Thereafter it became popular around the world. One of the most prolific German type designers of the 20th century, Trump created numerous typefaces in several different styles, but Trump Mediaeval is often regarded as his best work. Trump Mediaeval is an old style serif typeface, with new inherent quality that could only have come about after centuries of variation on this theme. It bears some resemblance to the classic Garamond™ typefaces, yet its characteristic letters set it apart in a positive way.

Akira Kobayashi, Linotype’s Type Director, released his own revived design, Trump Mediaeval Office, in 2006. Trump Mediaeval Office has two weights, each with an italic companion. Unlike the original design, Kobayashi has harmonized the varying letterforms across the two weights, allowing Regular and Bold text to stand side by side harmoniously. Trump Mediaeval’s numbers now match across weights as well, optimizing their legibility in sizes large and small. Decades ago, Trump Mediaeval was a popular choice for setting book texts, because of its robust serifs. These are exactly what make the face a good choice for office application today; on lower-resolution printers, these serifs will still remain a strong feature on the letterform, increasing legibility along the line of text.