Melancholia is a subtle and beautiful sans-serif inspired by calligraphic letterforms. The name describes a feeling of deep sadness, an intense sensitivity to the world. The design of Melancholia is an attempt to introduce some of that wistfulness into the sans-serif form, a typographic classification that is often characterised by an austere functionality. Melancholia includes a set of true italics influenced by old-style serif italics, such as those found in Claude Garamond’s eponymous typeface, as well as a set of stylistic alternates and calligraphic-style swash characters.

Named for Antoine Augereau, teacher of Claude Garamond, this much admired rendition of the classic Garamond typeface was created by George Abrams and released in 1997.