Probably a customized cliché made out of lead – since photopolymer wasn’t invented at that time.

The bottom example really shows how it was done. Note that the N does not join ... it is done with three pieces of rule, abutting. Thus I suspect that the dot is a bullet character built into the line above. It would be interesting to see what arrangement of furniture pieces was used to make those slanted rules sit as they do.

The top example is more likely a logotype cast in one piece. The thin strokes of the N make me fairly certain it would be cast metal, and not a wood type block.

Kristian, Don (Don: it’s an i, not an N! ;-)), thanks so far. Both of your guesses go into the same direction that I thought possible. The cliché or other type of “done in one piece” seems to be done differently in the two examples, though: I agree that the thin strokes could probably be cast metal, but in the lower right example ("1924") the left upstroke is not as smooth and the bottom of the stem looks curved or even carved (by hand?):

[Don] It would be interesting to see what arrangement of furniture pieces was used to make those slanted rules sit as they do.
Maybe something like this way?

Stephen

In most of these illustrations the combinations of existent cast material would have been constructed using a printers' saw (or similar device), which would allow one to either cut away material or undercut (the body only) as in kerning. Fairly routine letterpress practices. None of these look like they would have required a special lockup as you speculate.

Gerald
The Bieler Press
http://BielerPress.blogspot.com

Gerald,
thank you for your comment, that is exactly the kind of information I am looking for because I don't have any real working experience in a letterpress environment.
I hope that such knowledge will be preserved though it seems to be a little outdated.
You are indicating that procedures like the ones presumably used for the preparation of my examples is fairly routine letterpress practices: This seconds my assumption that most of the "historical avant-garde" type experiments are in fact applications of standard printing opportunities of their time (and space, and knowledge, and availability of resources) to a new field (literature).
Any more comments on the examples above?
Thanks again, Stephan

The letter was made by mitering the lines (Rules) up against a conventional letter. A letterpress bullet was placed on the top.
The spacing material to support it were also mitered at a 45 degree angle. It was an everday practice in the composing rooms of the past. I maintain a letterpress environment just to keep my head straight and I find it a way to unwind from the Mac.

Stephan. That is pretty much how I would see the furniture sitting. It would depend on the size of the character, of course. It would also be possible that they actually would cut the wood to the proper angle, as they did with the rule used to make the I that looks like an N.

Stephen

To some extent, most of the "historical avant-garde" experiments would have been produced with time-honored printing practices. I think that Marinetti's page of 1918[?] (which interestingly is contemporary with Cobden-Sanderson's Genesis page) was produced simply by pouring molten lead into the chase to lockup the random configuration of the various metal type pieces. Nothing new about the practice, but there sure was about Marinetti.

I'm not sure the slanted lines are actually rule but likely large slashes that were undercut. Looks like the 2nd and 3rd examples are simply a lower case i snugged up against the slashes. First example could simply be a large point (period) turned sideways and cut to fit. All kinds of possibilities. But I don't see any need here for clever lockups.

Gerald
The Bieler Press
http://BielerPress.blogspot.com

I had not been thinking of slashes. Or possibly a solidus. In either case, they would have been cut on a metal saw to fit flush against the I piece. This would be more stable than a slanted rule.

I haven't got enough handset experience to know for sure. I do know that those guys could do some amazing things with the limited tools available.

Thanks a lot to everybody.
I just received a scan of the original edition from 1923 (not in the best quality, though), which is similar to the second version in my first post: