A bevy of doves, all leaden and greased
From the craftsman’s hands to the murkdrab bequeathed
Cried coo, did the dule, of the duel of two men
Then soared, silent roared
and drowned in the Thames.

Have you ever heard the story of Doves Type? This ill-fated typeface found itself at the bottom of the Thames after a dispute between the owners of a private printing press in Hammersmith.

When the two couldn’t agree over the rights to this bespoke set of letters, one of the partners (Cobden-Sanderson) decided to dispatch with them instead. Over some 170 trips to the Thames under cover of darkness (and perhaps the watchful eye of a few pigeons!), Cobden-Sanderson lobbed each letter into the river, never to be seen again!

Until, that is, designer Robert Green managed to recover 150 pieces from the riverbed in 2015 – almost 100 years after their original drowning.