Philippe Grandjean

Philippe Grandjean (born 1666, Mâcon, Fr.—died May 6, 1714, Paris) was a French type engraver particularly noted for his famous series of roman and italic types known as Romain du Roi. The design was commissioned in 1692 for the Imprimerie Royale (royal printing house) of King Louis XIV and was carried out by a committee of mathematicians, philosophers, and others, who produced carefully worked-out drawings. The type itself was cut by Grandjean; he achieved a modern look by using thin flat serifs and virtually eliminating the brackets joining them to the main strokes.

Reserved for use by the Imprimerie Royale, Romain du Roi made its first appearance in the magnificent Médailles sur les principaux énvenémens du règne de Louis-le-Grand (1702). The success of the type soon prompted many other typefounders to use modifications of it. Work on the type was continued by Grandjean’s pupil Jean Alexandre and completed by Louis Luce in 1745.