Documentary Artefacts in Our Collection

Physical objects incorporating elements of a document

Type Formes
These are printing jobs, set up in type. They should, normally, have been put away or melted down years ago, but somehow survived to be collected for our visitors and researchers to see and print from.

Stereotype Mats and Blocks
A job set up in type, or an engraving, could be reproduced into a block by a moulding process called stereotyping. Many stereotypes could be made from the one matrix, enabling the same information to be distributed to many printers.

Electrotypes are similar but were made using electrolytic deposition instead of casting in typemetal.

Engraved Blocks
To be printed by letterpress, a drawing or photograph needs to be engraved. Since about 1880, most engravings were produced by `Photoengraving'. This largely supplanted wood engraving.

Rubber Stamps
Rubber Stamp making was often part of a printer's business. Stamps are made from type and engravings, just like stereotypes.

Cutting / Creasing Formes
A forme made up of strips of sharp-edged steel is used to cut out, crease and perforate sheets of paper or card.

The cutting forme goes into a letterpress with inking rollers removed (or purpose-built without rollers).

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