Printing Plate
1927 (published)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This printing plate was for a facsimile edition of Songs of Innocence and Experience by William Blake (1757–1827), a poet and printmaker who developed the technique of relief etching and closely integrated text and image on the same plate. The facsimile was made using the same process.
To make a relief etching the artist drew the design in an acid resistant substance so that when the plate was immersed in acid, the drawn areas were protected. When the acid had eaten into the rest of the plate, the lines of the design then stood up in relief. The softer metal zinc was preferred for relief etched plates, rather than copper as used in intaglio etching.
To make a relief etching the artist drew the design in an acid resistant substance so that when the plate was immersed in acid, the drawn areas were protected. When the acid had eaten into the rest of the plate, the lines of the design then stood up in relief. The softer metal zinc was preferred for relief etched plates, rather than copper as used in intaglio etching.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Relief etched zinc plate with traces of printing ink |
| Brief description | Relief etched zinc plate for a facsimile of William Blake's Songs of Innocence and Experience. Muir and Trumble edition, published in London by Bernard Quaritch, 1927. 'Infant Joy'. |
| Physical description | Featuring leaves and stem of a flower which curls round and opens up above a verse. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Given by Elizabeth Badcock née Trumble |
| Literary reference | Songs of Innocence and Experience, by William Blake |
| Summary | This printing plate was for a facsimile edition of Songs of Innocence and Experience by William Blake (1757–1827), a poet and printmaker who developed the technique of relief etching and closely integrated text and image on the same plate. The facsimile was made using the same process. To make a relief etching the artist drew the design in an acid resistant substance so that when the plate was immersed in acid, the drawn areas were protected. When the acid had eaten into the rest of the plate, the lines of the design then stood up in relief. The softer metal zinc was preferred for relief etched plates, rather than copper as used in intaglio etching. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.95-2017 |
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| Record created | June 30, 2015 |
| Record URL |
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