Melancholia

Technique and condition

Monochrome relief print on off-white, wove, Western paper. The print is in moderate condition with some surface dirt and planar distortions. It has been cut out of a book or illustrated magazine and the type on the verso can be seen in the unprinted areas of the print. At this date, most monochrome prints that were integrated with the typeface in books and illustrated magazines were produced through wood engravings or line blocks. Both of these processes involve relief printing techniques. This appears to be a line-block rather than a wood engraving, because although the use of cross-hatching is employed, some of the black lines appear to be too loose to be a wood engraving.

Katharine Lockett
April 2003

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