ABRADED.
Having a worn or rubbed appearance as a result of mechanical or chemical action. An abrasion is a localized abraded area.

ACID FREE.
A paper product having a pH level of 7 or above.

ACIDIC.
In paper, an unstable state whereby the molecular structure of the paper breaks down, causing discoloration and weakening of the sheet.

ACRYLIC.
Refers to a class of synthetic polymeric resins used extensively in emulsion paints, varnishes and adhesive formulations. In sheet form the acrylic resins bear trade names such as Plexiglas, Lucite and Perspex.

AGING.
The continuous action of atmospheric components- oxygen, moisture, as well as light, temperature - on materials and structures, leading to deterioration. Natural aging deterioration may also be caused by incompatible components reacting slowly within the structure.

AIR-BRUSH (Aerograph).
A small air-gun capable of spraying paint, ink, varnish or ground in a stream of fine droplets. It can be used in lithography and aquatint, for the application of a flat tint, and on drawings which are to be photographed in the half-tone technique.

ALKALINE BUFFER.
An additive used in paper-making processes and conservation treatments that will raise the pH level.

ALUMINUM.
This metal can be used in printmaking either as a plate, or as a support for an impression to be made upon. In the former case, it can be (a) engraved with the burin, (b) etched with mercuric bichloride, or (c) prepared lithographically. Impressions can be made directly onto the metal, in particular with the screenprinting technique.

ARCHIVAL.
An archival material should have a neutral or slightly alkaline pH; it should also have good aging properties.

ARTIST'S PROOF. (See "proof")

AQUATINT. (See "Printmaking Techniques" on Masterworks Fine Art website)
A process of intaglio engraving on metal.

BEADING.
A greasy surface repels water and aqueous preparations by reducing them to droplets. This beading will occur if, for example, a copper plate which has not been cleaned properly is covered with Indian ink.

BED (OF PRESS).
Part of a press on which the plate or block rests during printing. In a lithographic press, the bed is a mobile element which transports stone to a position beneath the scraper or roller.

BEVELLING.
The edges of intaglio plates are bevelled to ensure that they do not cut the paper in the press. A true bevel is only necessary if the plate is more than a millimeter thick, otherwise a light rounding off is sufficient.

BITING.
The process of (1) corroding a design on a metal plate in either intaglio (e.g. etching) or relief (e.g. line block); and (2) fixing the image on the stone or metal plate in lithography (see: reinforcing). It is done with a mordant: acid solution, salt (perchloride of iron), etc.

BLANCHING.
A pale discoloration on a surface as a result of superficial water or solvent penetration.

BLANKETS.
Blankets may be used as the packing placed between the upper roller of the intaglio press and the paper when printing. These are used to even out the pressure being applied to a plate.

BLOCK.
The wooden element which is printed in making woodcuts and wood engraving. The word also applies to typographical printing elements.

BLURRING.
An impression will receive a blurred appearance if the paper and the inked roller are not properly registered during printing.

"BON A TIRER".
Literally means "Good to print:" It is generally assigned on a trial proof by the artist when he wishes to indicate to the professional printer that a satisfactory state of his print has been obtained. It gives the printer the standard to which he must adhere in taking successive impressions.

BUCKLING.
A radical shrinkage or compression of a surface (e.g panel painting) as a result of environmental action. This often results in generalized lifting or cleavage of the paint and decoration layers.

BURIN ENGRAVING.
Also known as line engraving.

BURNISHING.
The operation of smoothing out the grain in the mezzotint process with the aid of the burnisher, a polished steel tool with a large round head. It is also used on metal plates where corrections are required.

BURR.
The cutting action of a tool across a metal plate causes rough ridges known as "burr" to be thrown up on either side of the incision. The ridges left by a burin are quite small and are removed with the scraper; the drypoint creates a large burr, which retains the ink and prints an area of rich tone - the particular characteristic of this technique. Burr is very fragile and, unless the plate is steel-faced, will rapidly wear away in the press. Usually lasts for only 10-20 impressions after creation.

CALLIPERS.
A tool resembling a pair of dividers used in making corrections on an intaglio plate. They locate the corresponding position, of the part to be corrected, on the back of the plate. The indentation caused by erasing the mistake on the front is then knocked up from behind with a hammer.

CANCELED PLATE.
When the printing of a limited edition of prints has been completed, it is usual to deface the plates, stones, etc., to ensure that there is no possibility of their being reprinted. A cancellation impression is one that is taken to prove the cancellation.

CARBORUNDUM.
A very hard mixture consisting primarily of silicon carbide; it is used as an abrasive and, in powdered form, in a method of engraving invented by Henri Goetz. He used it to obtain a dotted effect by sprinkling it over a metal plate (usually duralumin) which was then pulled through a press, thereby causing the grains to penetrate the metal.

CARTOUCHE.
Ornamental design resembling the curves of a rolled-up parchment scroll. It is found at the base of old master engravings containing inscriptions (title, dedication, date, signature, etc.).

CHIAROSCURO or CHIAROSCURO WOODCUT. (See "Printmaking Techniques" on Masterworks Fine Art website)
1. In a general sense, chiaroscuro describes the method of using contrasted light and shade as a means of illuminating and giving form to a particular subject. 2. In a specific sense, it describes a particular woodcutting process (chiaroscuro woodcut) in which tone blocks (usually in lighter and darker tones of one color.) are overprinted and juxtaposed to obtain a colored print. The same technique can be applied to lithography: different stones are used for the varying tones.

CHINE COLLE.
Areas of thin colored tissue mounted on or glued to the surface of a print.

CHISEL.
A flat tool used in woodcutting. It has a bevelled edge and is either pushed manually, or knocked with a mallet, over large areas to be cut away, i.e. those between the edges of the design and the sides of the block.

CHROMOLITHOGRAPHY.
In a loose manner this can mean simply printing lithographs in color. The term was specifically applied to certain nineteenth-century color lithographs which were reproductive in intention and imitated the appearance of oil paintings. They were printed from a large number of stones, which demands a good technical skill.

CLEANING.
As used in painting conservation, refers to application of solvents and other liquids to remove discolored surface coatings, as well as to retouchings and restorations not part of the original work. In other contexts, it refers to the removal of dirt and coating from surfaces by a variety of liquid and/or dry techniques.

CLICHE-VERRE (GLASS PRINT). (See "Printmaking Techniques" on Masterworks Fine Art website)
A process of planographic printing. From the French term "clichoverre." The artist draws a design with a needle on a glass plate coated with an opaque ground from which positive photographic prints are made on sensitized paper as from an ordinary negative.

CLIPPING.
Reducing the margins of a print.

COLLAGRAPH.
The print resulting from a collage of materials glued together on a base and printed as a combined relief and intaglio plate.

COLLOTYPE.
Initially called albertype, after its principal inventor, this process consists in pouring a layer of gelatine mixed with potassium chromate over the surface of a zinc or glass plate which is then exposed to light to receive the image. The gelatine hardens in proportion to the amount of light received, the unexposed parts remaining soft and capable of retaining moisture, and the printing can therefore be done, lithographically: the plate is dampened with water and the ink is applied with a roller. It adheres to the surface in inverse proportion to the amount of moisture retained, the hard areas of gelatine printing the darkest. The reticulated grain of collotype is particularly good for reproducing watercolor, for which the process was much used during the latter part of the nineteenth century.

COLOR. BLOCK.
Color. blocks (or tone blocks) print the various colors in a color. or chiaroscuro woodcut. The key block prints the outline. See: chiaroscuro, color. printing.

COLOR PRINTING.
In woodcuts, color printing is done with several different color. Blocks which are overprinted. Chiaroscuro woodcuts are printed in various tones of one color. And for this reason cannot be classed as true color. prints. A more unusual method of color. Printing can be done from one assembled block; the various parts having been previously separated and inked with the different colors There are two different ways of intaglio color. Printing: with several plates, i.e. one for each color., which are overprinted juxtaposed next to each other; or with one plate which has been inked in different parts with separate colors applied with a brush or stumps of rag (a la poupee or "dolly"). Several stones are used in lithographic color. Printing, one or the other sometimes replaced by a zinc plate. Known as chromolithography (or chromo), it was a popular technique in the nineteenth century. Colors can be printed side by side, or overprinted, in screenprinting, by preparing the screen in such a way that a place is reserved for each color. without the various inks smudging. In letterpress, offset lithography and photogravure several blocks/plates are also used: there are three if the base colors, blue, red and yellow, are used (by overprinting different colors can be obtained), or four if grey or black is added to emphasize the dark areas. Printing with different colored blocks, plates or stones demands exact registration involving a careful concordance of the variously colored parts. Usually colors are printed from light to dark but often the blues are printed first. N.B. There is a difference between color. Prints and impressions taken from a single colorblock, plate or stone (other than brown or black). Neither must they be confused with handcolored prints.

CONSERVATION.
The restoration of works of art with the aim to correct damage caused by handling, excessive exposure to light, smoke, dust, humidity or aridity, and contact with liquid or any other destructive substance. Present methods allow cleaning and repair, provided that the print has not been subjected to irreversible alterations.

CONSERVATOR.
A person specially trained in the preventive care and maintenance as well as restoration of works of art and museum objects. The term restorer traditionally refers to a person trained in carrying out remedial or restorative treatments. In Francophone countries the term restaurateur covers both kinds of person; the term conservator referring to a curator or a keeper.

COPPER.
The most important metal used in engraving. It is supple to work, yet strong enough to endure the press, receptive to ink and wipes clean without leaving traces. It polishes well and is also sensitive to mordants. It does, however, tarnish quickly if left unprotected.

COPPER-FACING.
The application of a very thin layer of copper onto a metal plate by means of electrolysis. Zinc must initially be copper-faced if a steel-facing is to be applied.

COPY.
A print is a copy if the designer has taken the image from another artist.

CORROSIVE AGENTS.
Products used for cleaning and biting the various fabrics, papers, stones and metals used in printmaking are divided into three types: acids, alkalis and salts. Nitric acid is the most commonly used of the acids. It bites copper (c. 15 degrees Baume), zinc and steel (between 5 degrees 15 degrees Baume), in a rapid, shallow manner; it is also used for cleaning and for preparing the lithographic stone. Sulphuric acid is used for cleaning and biting steel. Hydrochloric acid attacks zinc and steel and in a diluted form is used for washing. Phosphoric acid is used for cleaning ferrous metals and aluminium as well as for preparing zinc and aluminium for the lithographic and offset techniques. Hydrofluoric acid attacks glass and ceramic. Acetic acid (vinegar) was formerly used frequently in the composition of etches. Of the alkalis, soda is the most commonly used: as a detergent for washing the screen, for cleaning metal plates, and for bleaching. It is used particularly on zinc, iron and aluminium, as well as on organic materials. Potash possesses approximately the same characteristics. Ammonia is used as a cleaning agent. The most frequently used of the salts is ferric chloride, a slow etch which penetrates in depth while preserving the form of the design. On account of these qualities it is much used in aquatint and photogravure.

COUTERPROOF.
An impression taken from a freshly printed sheet onto another piece of paper. It shows the design in the same direction as that on the plate, stone or block; the artist uses it for assessing corrections to be made.

COVERAGE.
The ability of an ink to cover and absorb into a surface as regards the amount required for printing. It is relative to the receptivity of the support to the ink.

CRACKS.
In grounds, paint layers, surface coatings (of paintings), the term designates a system of fissures that develop with the aging of the materials, or as a result of environmental action (expansion, contraction of the support), or a combination of both. There are various recognized systems of cracks, or craquelure, which result from both natural and environmental causes, and are characteristic too of the artist's technique and materials.

CRAYON.
Various types of crayon are used in printmaking. The greasy lithographic crayon is made with a natural grease or a chemical. A corrective crayon is used in lithography to remove lines or blemishes.

DABBER.
There are various types of dabbers used in printmaking. The inking dabber, a round tool, with a wide base, is covered in leather of fine skin; it is used for inking the incisions on an intaglio plate and the relief areas on a wood block. A dabber is also used for laying the ground: it is half-moon shaped, stuffed with cotton and covered in silk. In lithography, a type of wash is applied to the stone with a dabber made of a ball of cotton covered with fine skin.

DAMPENING.
1. Paper is often moistened before printing as this makes it more flexible when contact is made with the block, plate, etc., and also ensures better receptivity of the ink. 2. In lithography and offset lithography the surface of the stone must be thoroughly dampened before the printing ink is applied. This prevents the ink from adhering to the nongreased parts.

DEACIDIFY.
To chemically stabilize acidic paper; can be either an aqueous or non-aqueous treatment.

DECKLE EDGE.
The rough uneven edge on handmade paper and on some good quality machine made paper which has been left untrimmed.

DISINTEGRATION OF PAPER.
Printing error which occurs if paper that has been excessively dampened is put in the press. It becomes attached to the plate and disintegrates.

DOTTER MANNER.
A method of engraving dating from the fifteenth century. Small round holes were stamped with a punch and hammer into a metal plate which was then inked and printed as a relief block or metalcut. The stamped work appears as white dots surrounded by black and gives a crude effect of tone.

DOT WORK.
A loose description of the surface of any metal plate, either relief (see: dotted manner) or intaglio, which has been dotted or grained in a manner such as to create an impression of tone when printed. The dots can be achieved either by working directly on the plate or by etching through a ground.

DOUBLE IMAGE.
A printing error which causes the image of the print to appear twice. It occurs if the paper falls out of alignment as a result of not being properly secured during one or, more likely, two passages through the press. The blankets may also cause the paper to move if not properly fixed.

DRYING.
1. The layer of ink on a freshly printed sheet can dry in one of three different ways: by evaporation of the solvent that maintains the ink in a liquid form; by penetration of the paper; or by oxidation on contact with the air. Inks used in relief, intaglio and lithographic printing dry by penetrating the paper and by oxidation; those used in photogravure dry by evaporation and by penetration. The greasy inks used in screenprinting dry by oxidizing and by penetrating the paper; cellulose and water-based inks also dry by evaporation and by penetration. 2. The drying of paper: in intaglio and lithographic printing, the paper is dampened before an impression is taken. It is then flattened by laying it between sheets of cardboard and dried in a press for at least twelve hours. 3. Methods of drying: in most techniques, an electric drier propelling hot or cold air is used. In screenprinting, freshly printed sheets have to be placed on specially constructed racks, as it i more important for them to be kept well apart when drying than in other techniques. Usually is sufficient to make a pile of fresh impression with interleaving sheets.

DRYPOINT. (See "Printmaking Techniques" on Masterworks Fine Art website)
A method of intaglio engraving on metal.

EMBOSSING.
A printmaking method in which a design is impressed into paper without the use of any ink, creating a heavily raised surface area.

ENGRAVER.
1. One who practices engraving.
2. The specialist who engraved on the stone in lithographic engraving: a technique which was popular when lithography had a larger industry than it has today. (See "lithography")
3. In photogravure, the line engraver specializes in the etching process.

ENGRAVING. (See "Printmaking Techniques" on Masterworks Fine Art website)
In a general sense, the word covers all works of art or industry (both plate and impression) which use incision as means of marking the design.

ENVIRONMENT, ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS.
In the context of conservation and deterioration studies, these terms refer to physical effects of the environment, such as humidity, temperature, light, pollutants of the atmosphere.

ETCHER.
An engraver who practices the etching process.

ETCHING. (See "Printmaking Techniques" on Masterworks Fine Art website)
One of the most important methods of intaglio engraving.

ETCHING "A la Plume".
A method of intaglio printing in which a pen and ink drawing is made on a clean metal plate. When this has dried, the entire surface is covered with a light aquatint ground and placed in an acid bath which has the effect of removing the ground where it is to be found over the ink. The plate can then be bitten as for a normal etching. The technique is difficult to do well, and was much improved by the sugar-lift process.

"EX-LIBRIS".
An owner's mark placed in a book, usually on the inside of the cover. Engraved ones have been used since the fifteenth century.

EXPANSION.
The result of change in the dimension of a sheet of paper due to excess humidity; more pronounced across the grain than with it.

FACSIMILE.
1. A print which is an exact copy of an original design, i.e. a "reproductive" print as opposed to an "original" print. 2. In a more specific sense it refers to the exact reproduction of a line drawing in wood engraving (as opposed to its interpretation in a brush or wash technique) and was particularly popular in the nineteenth century. Photomechanical processes are also used for obtaining facsimiles.

FADING.
The gradation of a tint in an imperceptible manner.

FALSE MARGINS.
A print may not have normal margins for a variety of reasons. In this case, it may be mounted on a larger sheet of paper which provides it with false margins.

"FECIT".
Sometimes found after the name of the engraver or maker at the base of a print, meaning the artist whose name it follows "made it."

FELT.
Woollen or cotton material used for packing round the printing rollers.

FIBER FILL.
Utilizing paper pulp to complete losses in a sheet of paper.

FILLET.
1. A spacer device placed between the glazing and the mount in a frame which prohibits the glazing material from coming in contact with the artwork.
2. An ornamental wood molding put outside the image and inside the matting of a framed work of art.

FIRST EDITION.
The earliest edition of a book or a print to be taken.

FLAKING.
Loss of small islands of paint, or other surface material, or even ground layers following cleavage, blistering, or buckling action in paintings or similar works of art.

FLATTENING.
A restoration procedure involving controlled humidification and controlled drying under pressure.

FORMAT.
Plates, blocks and screens, sheets of paper, film and negatives often have recurrent formats, which means that the dimensions of a print frequently recur.

FOXING, FOX MARKS.
The discoloration of paper or other surfaces by brownish or greyish spots, believed to be caused by micro-organisms (mould) developing rapidly at high humidities under stagnant conditions. This is frequently due to artworks being framed without using archival conservation framing standards. A good conservator can easily repair this type of damage.

FRONTISPIECE.
In the oldest sense of the word, the frontispiece refers to an ornate title page in a book; more recently; it has applied to an illustration placed before or opposite the title page.

GLASS PRINTS.
The "cliche-verre" is sometimes translated as a glass print. Completely distinct from this are certain decorative items produced in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, which are also often termed "glass prints": a mezzotint was glued face down onto glass, then rubbed from behind to remove all the paper, hand colored, and framed.

GOUGE.
A tool used for cutting wood and linoleum, specifically to clear away larger spaces of the block. Curved gouges may be obtained as well as flat ones. V-shaped.gouges are used for cutting deep, angular furrows. A gouge used in linocutting resembles a pen and is attached to a pearshaped handle.

GRADATION.
Gradual strengthening, or weakening, of a tone.

GRAIN.
1. A loose description of aquatint ground and of its resulting effect on an impression, and of any other printing element or impression with dots or grain on its surface. 2. The irregular aspect of the surface of a stone, plate or transfer paper in the lithographic method, necessary to the firm adhesion of the marks of the crayon. It is created on the stone or plate by an initial graining process. 3. The irregular aspect of the surface of paper or of transparent film used in screenprinting.