Mariano de Vierna y Carles-Tolra wrote:

> [...]
> Well, I first want to recognize that I am not an expert on
> writing systems, but I am interested on
> them (and have learned Japanese system). I think, as already
> mentioned in a previous message that
> what is being spoken about is the representation of what in
> phonetics has been called *distinctive
> traits*, sorry I was not aware that the term *featural* was
> being used to name them and I suggested
> *phonemic distinctive traits writing system* that is a more
> explicit expression: I think that never
> has been made a system of that kind (neither han-gul nor
> Bell's visible speech are that, and the IPA
> neither isn't that).

Well, "never" is a very long time.

There was at least one such script. Each syllable was composed by
horizontal lines, representing the place of articulation (labial, dental,
velar, etc.), crossed with vertical lines, representing the mode of
articulation (fricative, occlusive, etc.).

The script was used some twenty years ago by an Italian school child to
write secret notes on his diary. Some samples of the script might still
exist somewhere in my dad's garage. :-)

_ Marco