diff --git a/src/core/evaluator.js b/src/core/evaluator.js
index a6ebd12b1..213e9b4c1 100644
--- a/src/core/evaluator.js
+++ b/src/core/evaluator.js
@@ -1176,10 +1176,9 @@ class PartialEvaluator {
     let fontRef;
     if (font) {
       // Loading by ref.
-      if (!(font instanceof Ref)) {
-        throw new FormatError('The "font" object should be a reference.');
+      if (font instanceof Ref) {
+        fontRef = font;
       }
-      fontRef = font;
     } else {
       // Loading by name.
       const fontRes = resources.get("Font");