Moon type

It is claimed by its supporters to be easier to understand than braille, though it is mainly used by people who have lost their sight as adults, and thus already have knowledge of the shapes of letters.

Moon is not as well known as braille, but it is a valuable alternative[citation needed] touch reading scheme for the blind or partially sighted people of any age.

As the characters are quite large and over half the letters bear a strong resemblance to the print equivalent, Moon has been found particularly suitable for those who lose their sight later in life or for people who may have a less keen sense of touch.

In 1874, an English missionary taught a young blind man to read romanised Ningbo written in Moon type.

A Swiss missionary placed notices on placards throughout Ningbo stating that he would give food and money to the blind people who visited.

[3] Similarly to Braille, the initial version of Moon type used the first ten letters with a "number start" symbol as digits.