This work investigates the historical development and aesthetic characteristics of civilité typefaces within the context of 16th-century French printing. The author, Harry Graham Carter, a noted expert in typography and printing history, utilizes his extensive research into the evolution of letterforms to explain how these unique scripts were adapted from contemporary handwriting into movable metal type. The text provides a technical framework for understanding the transition from calligraphic styles to printed characters, emphasizing the cultural and mechanical challenges faced by early modern printers.

Experts in the field of typography recognize this work as a foundational text for understanding the specific challenges of early modern type design. Readers frequently note the academic density of the prose, which provides a rigorous examination of historical printing techniques.