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And, per se...
Did you know that's where the ampersand came from? The folks at "The Ampersand" certainly did. It is a blog related to the ampersand, its design, history, usage, and...tattoos... Comment
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Comment by Karen Brattain on May 26, 2008 at 10:35am - That is so amazing, Rachel. Thanks for giving us some history. The word "ampersand" is such an unusual one; it's great to know where it came from. And now I just have to find Poetica!
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Comment by Rachel Tobie on May 24, 2008 at 1:39pm - I did a lot of research on the design history of the ampersand last fall. It seems that the ampersand used to appear at the end of the alphabet on horn books used by British school children: "...X, Y, Z, &." When they recited their alphabets aloud, they would end with "...X, Y, Zed, and per se and" (meaning something like "'and,' which itself means 'and'"). Kids eventually slurred "and per se and" into "ampersand" by the year 1770. I've got a lot more research and resources on this subject if anyone ever needs 'em. :) Also, check out the font Poetica by Robert Slimbach, which has no fewer than 47 ampersand variations available; this font alone pretty much shows the entire design history of the ampersand.
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Comment by Cliff N. Hansen on May 21, 2008 at 10:52pm - I never learned how to draw a perfect ampersand, mine's a ghetto backwards three with a vertical line through it. Maybe I should start practicing...it might not be too late to alter my penmanship. I can draw a treble clef correctly, not everyone can do that.
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Comment by Karen Brattain on May 21, 2008 at 10:16pm
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This is beautiful. Just beautiful. I can still remember the deep satisfaction I felt when I learned how to write the ampersand. It's just magical.
The Ink & Paper group spring to mind. Do they know about this site?
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