drop caps
Big first letters
Drop caps are oversized initial letters at the beginning of a text block, typically spanning two or more lines of body text.
The technique draws the eye and signals the start of a chapter, section, or article.
Common in books, magazines, and formal documents, drop caps descend from illuminated manuscripts where scribes decorated opening letters elaborately.
- textWritten or printed words
- first letterOpening character of word
- initialsAbbreviated personal letters
- fontCharacter style set
- manuscriptOriginal text before publication
typography · fancy letters · sections · chapters · print · book design · page layout · paragraph · illuminated manuscripts · medieval manuscripts · layout · letterforms · capitalize · introductions · indentations · typesetting · printed page · letterpress
- book partspage, pages, cover, index, chapter
- capitalizationuppercase, lowercase, capital letters, title case, sentence case
- letteringlettering styles, letterforms, calligraphy, hand lettering, handwriting
- printing historyprinting press, Gutenberg, typographers, Gutenberg press, block printing
- book aestheticsbook covers, dust jackets, bookbinding, leather binding, typography
- typesettingtypesetting, typesetter, leading, font, kerning