College Record 2014

a bare minimum.’ Wolpe named it after the thirteenth-century German theologian
and philosopher Albertus Magnus, who had been canonized in 1931.
Wolpe was himself a German, but of Jewish origin, and he emigrated to England
in the 1930s. He taught in London art schools, and designed more than 1,500 book
jackets for Faber and Faber, many with Albertus-type lettering.
To conclude our tale: the College of Arms had just granted arms, and this was the
font which was designated to go with them. The College Buildings Officer, Paul
Boddington, found a sign writer (who had until then been blissfully unaware of
Albertus) and he painted a few key signs on the walls. Only a few of these originals
survive and, over time, perhaps inevitably, the link between the College arms and
Albertus – indeed, Albertus as the College’s principal alphabet – has fallen into
desuetude.
With the opening of the Leonard Wolfson Auditorium and the forthcoming ‘Phase
II’, the issue of font for signage has returned. Albertus itself now looks somewhat
dated. The College may have been afraid to choose another font which, though
attractive at first, might prove to have a limited shelf-life – and, it must be said,
erring on the side of caution – so it has decided that the new font is to be one which
is familiar to most of us, thanks to its adoption by Microsoft, namely … Arial.
106