Mānuka
Klim Type Foundry · Kris Sowersby · 2021
A compressed display grotesque by Kris Sowersby, distilled from an 1860s German wood-type specimen and built for headline use across seven weights.
About
Mānuka takes its starting point from a numbered wood-type specimen by Will & Schumacher, Mannheim, circa 1860s, translating the original's mechanical compression and unusually sharp stroke joins into a contemporary display grotesque. Released in 2021, it spans seven weights from Thin to Ultra and sits alongside Mānuka Condensed and Mānuka Slab as part of a broader collection. Tight spacing, closed apertures and carefully preserved eccentric details – an elegant R kick, a serpentine g link, an elongated r terminal – give it a distinctive, angular texture uncommon in grotesque revival work.
Classification
Klim classifies Mānuka as Lineal: Grotesque. Designed specifically for display and large-scale use, the family is compressed throughout with tight spacing, closed apertures and sharp joins derived from an 1860s German wood-type specimen by Will & Schumacher, Mannheim. The sharp joins in strokes (d, h, n, m, u) are highly unusual for sans-serif construction and distinguish it clearly from conventional grotesques. Part of a three-family collection alongside Mānuka Condensed (more compressed) and Mānuka Slab (slab-serif variant drawn from the same specimen's slab series, Nº 264–282).