Styles of Matrix Numbers

During the course of time, the style and typeface of fonts used for matrix numbers at Electrola changed. Here is a list of the styles used. The titles are basically our own descriptive device to distinguish them from each other.

1963-1967: Wide Engraving

The typeface used is rather wide and angular. The spaces between characters are wide. The engraving is fine and sometimes hard to see at the wrong angle. Some of the engraving was done on the mothers instead of the lacquers, so copies from different mothers could have entirely different matrices.

1968-1970: Narrow Engraving

The typeface is similar to Wide Engraving, but, while numerals are of similar width, alphabetic letters are narrower. Spacing between characters is rather small. The engraving is fine and very hard to see at the wrong angle. The engraving was most probably done on mothers instead of the lacquers, so copies from different mothers could have entirely different matrices.

1970-1979: Stamping at Label

Typeface is small and rounded, with very wide spacing between characters. Matrix numbers are stamped very close to label, touching the raised edge of the label area. Edges of characters are coarse and rough which implies the stamping might have been done on the actual lacquers.

1969-1979: Additional Engraving

Represses of older cuts would often get a new part of the matrix in addition to the old one. This “Additional Engraving” would be done in a font similar to Narrow Engraving, but it is very much visible and obviously was done at a later point, probably at the mother stage.

1980 and later: Neat Deep Stamping

From 1979 on, a neat rounded font with moderately wide spacing is used. The stamping is deep but looks neat, without coarse artefacts on edges.