Ferdinand Magellan signature
Tall overlapping opening strokes precede a compact historical name band.
What does Ferdinand Magellan’s signature look like?
Tall overlapping opening strokes precede a compact historical name band. Several long near-horizontal lines cross beneath the letters, with a larger oval return near the right. Compare those lower gestures individually with the smaller written forms: the autograph’s broad base comes from repeated flourishes rather than an evenly spread row of body letters.
- Slant
- +14°forward
- Baseline
- −1.2°near level
- Width / height
- 2.83 : 1overall proportions
- Opening height
- 1.41×opening versus body letters
About Ferdinand Magellan and this autograph
Ferdinand Magellan (c. 1480 – 1521) was a Portuguese explorer in the service of Spain. This specimen is the Wikimedia Commons vector rendering of Ferdinand Magellan’s signature.
Ferdinand Magellan signature and handwriting analysis
Ferdinand Magellan’s signature sample has 14° of forward slant, a near-level baseline and 12 enclosed loops. Comparing autograph strokes, baseline angle (−1.2°), slant (+14°), opening ratio (1.41×) and enclosed loops (12) reveals how individual signature traits contrast with standard handwriting features. Use the layers to follow the writing line, letter band, slant and enclosed loops.
- Slantforward
- +14°
- Baselinenear level
- −1.2°
- Width / heightoverall proportions
- 2.83 : 1
- Opening heightopening versus body letters
- 1.41×
- Enclosed loopsclosed spaces in the image
- 12
- Ink groupsmain disconnected groups
- 3
- Ink densityinside the signature bounds
- 16.2%
- Underlinelower flourish
- 70% of width
- Finish heightrelative to the letter body
- −0.06×
Opening, letter body and finish
The opening stays near the height of the body letters. The opening-to-body ratio is 1.41×, while the whole image is 2.83 times as wide as it is tall. The rightmost ink finishes below the writing line; look at this ending separately from the slant of the letters themselves.
Loops and the lower flourish
The sample contains 12 enclosed loops and 3 main ink groups. The lower flourish spans about 70% of the full ink width, giving the name another line to follow beneath its letters.
All 11 measured signature features
Slant
+14°Angle of the letter strokes from vertical. Positive angles lean right; negative angles lean left.
The signature has a forward slant (+14°). The blue-green guides show the lean of strokes across the name.
Baseline
−1.2°Direction of the writing line from the beginning to the end of the signature.
The writing line stays nearly level (−1.2°). The red guide follows the base of the letters, separate from lower loops and flourishes.
Opening capital
1.4×Height of the opening letter relative to the typical letters that follow. 1× means similar heights.
The opening stands 1.4 times as high as the following letters. The purple box marks its area; the dashed blue guide marks the letter-body band.
Enclosed loops
12Closed spaces surrounded by ink, counted across the whole signature.
There are 12 enclosed loops in the sample. Orange outlines locate them. Compare their size and placement within the name.
Ink groups
3Separate connected areas of ink in the image. Dots or detached letters can form additional groups.
The signature contains 3 main ink groups. The visible ink is divided into separate shapes. Look at where those shapes join or separate.
Ink density
16%Share of the signature’s enclosing rectangle occupied by ink.
Ink covers 16% of the measured signature area; the rest is open space. Compare the open areas with the thickness of the visible strokes.
Underline / flourish
70% wideLength of a lower underline or flourish compared with the full signature width.
A lower underline or flourish spans about 70% of the name’s width. Its highlighted area shows how much emphasis sits beneath the letters.
Finish height
−0.1×Height of the rightmost ending above or below the baseline, in typical letter heights. Positive is above; negative is below.
The ending sits close to the writing line (−0.1 letter heights). The orange guide locates the finish relative to the red baseline.
Width / height
2.8 : 1Full ink width divided by full ink height, including the signature’s tall and low strokes.
The shape is 2.8 times as wide as it is high. Its ink spans 848 × 299 image pixels. Compare the horizontal spread with the vertical reach of the capitals and loops.
Ornamentation
6.6×Total traced stroke length divided by signature width. More turns and retraced shapes add length.
The traced strokes total 5,625 pixels, about 6.6 times the signature’s width. Look for loops, turns and flourishes that add movement within that width.
Angularity
4.0Number of corners per 100 pixels of traced ink outline. Higher values indicate more frequent sharp turns.
The outline contains about 4.0 corners per 100 pixels. Inspect the turns in the pen-path layer and compare pointed changes of direction with rounded curves.
Signatures with similar shapes
Compare these samples’ slant, proportions and letter rhythm with Ferdinand Magellan’s autograph.
