New Acquisition of Chant Type by the Abbey's Printing Office

The Abbey has been incredibly fortunate to acquire a stock of Chant Type cast by the Deberny et Peignot Foundry in Paris. Setting this type is a highly complex activity, as each note is formed of several composite pieces, stacked on top of one another, all of which are housed in five separate cases of type.

Incredibly rare, this set of type was purchased new by the Stanbrook Abbey Press in Worcester for their liturgical work in the early 1950s - probably one of the last sets sold. It was then property of the Jericho Press in Cambridge, after which is passed to us.

Setting chant in this way was the norm form the mid 14th century, up to the mid 20th, and was the method used by the great Abbey of Solemnses and the firm of Desclee of Tournai who prolifically printed chant to a very high standard.

The first piece of music set by the Abbey's printing guild

One of the five drawers of chant used in the process