Hotel Goldener Hirsch luggage labels
Gill Sans with Futura-like alternates
The Hotel Goldener Hirsch in Rothenburg, Germany apparently used these luggage labels over a long period of time. There are at least three versions – all undated – which can be distinguished by small differences. The most obvious one is the small type used for crediting the artist responsible for the woodcut. There is 1) Jessen-Schrift, 2) Gill Sans (shown above), and 3) Bodoni-Kursiv, although not necessarily in this chronological order.
The woodcut showing the “Golden Stag” stays the same. So does the larger type. It’s Rudolf Koch’s Neuland (16pt, with an alternate C?), paired with the hatched Ege-Schrift by Eduard Ege. The two all-caps typefaces were both released in 1923. In version 1, the word “HOTEL” is set with tighter spacing, and the Rothenburg skyline with the coat of arms are better defined. The other two versions appear to differ in the same way for these details.
Willi Foerster (stylized: Fœrster) was a local graphic artist and painter who lived from 1892 to 1965. From 1908 to 1910, he studied under Otto Ludwig Naegele in Munich.
Designed by Rudolf Koch from 1924 on, Jessen-Schrift was released by Gebr. Klingspor in 1930.
An unidentified version of Bodoni-Kursiv. Judging from W and t, it might be Schriftguss AG’s cut from 1928.
Another undated luggage label for the same hotel, using three sizes of the Neuland series (14, 20, 10pt).
