Slab Square Pona 1 is a bold, narrow, low contrast, upright, normal x-height font visually similar to 'Chicago Shift' by Letterhend and 'Durham Latin' by Mayfield Type Foundry (names referenced only for comparison).
Keywords: headlines, posters, sports branding, signage, packaging, industrial, collegiate, vintage, sturdy, authoritative, impact, compactness, tradition, blocky, angular, bracketless, octagonal, condensed.
A condensed, heavy serif design with squared slab-like serifs and flat, clipped terminals. Curves are minimized into faceted, octagonal shapes (notably in round letters and numerals), giving counters a compact, machined feel. Strokes are low in contrast with firm vertical stress, and the overall rhythm is tight and upright, producing dense word shapes with strong edge definition. The lowercase follows the same structural logic, with short joins and compact bowls that keep texture dark and consistent across lines.
Best suited to display settings where a strong, compact voice is needed—headlines, posters, team or club branding, labels, and signage. The dense texture and crisp corners help it hold presence at larger sizes and in short to medium-length copy where impact and legibility are priorities.
The tone is assertive and utilitarian, evoking athletic lettering, stamped signage, and workwear-era typography. Its angular cuts and compact proportions feel disciplined and no-nonsense, projecting toughness and tradition rather than delicacy.
The design appears intended to deliver a bold, space-efficient slab serif with an industrial, collegiate flavor, using faceted curves and square terminals to maximize solidity and visual punch in display typography.
Round forms like O/Q/0 read as squared-off ovals with clipped corners, reinforcing the geometric, engineered character. Numerals are sturdy and uniform, and the punctuation and spacing shown in the samples create a solid, poster-like color on the page.