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  2. Robert Morison’s 'Plantarum Historia Universalis Oxoniensis': A Seventeenth-Century Botanical Treasure
  3. Printing Morison's illustrations

Plate to print: process

Commentary
Plate to print: process

This is one of the plates of umbellifers from Part 3 of the Historia, which was published in 1699. Among the plants on the plate are the familiar domesticated carrot (top row, image 1), together with a dark-red sort (‘atrorubente’; top row, image 2), and a wild carrot (top row, image 3).

The copper plate is 242 mm wide, 357 mm long and 1.72 mm thick; it weighs 1340 g (slightly less than a typical bag of flour). The text and images are of course reversed on the copper plate compared to the printed version. Faint lines of text, transferred from the paper once used to wrap the plate, are visible on its tarnished copper face. Slight abrasions from wear and tear as the plate can be discerned on the smooth face, whilst Michael Burghers’ (c.1647-1727) work is picked out in centuries-old printer’s ink, trapped in the marks he created with his burin. Corners of the copper plate are rounded and edges bevelled.

The back of the copper plate tells a different story. Ink and scuff marks are present on its unpolished surface, which is puddled with the impressions of having been beaten to make the copper plate blank. Punch marks indicate where edits to the front surface happened. To make a change on the front of the plate it is necessary to raise the metal surface, remove the error and then smooth the surface before re-engraving. For example, the long line of punch marks on the right of the plate shows where the name of the plant now called ‘Umbelliferis affinis capitulis globosis et villosis, Nobis.’ was edited. We do not know the reason for such an extensive change; maybe the plant’s name changed between the plate being first engraved and its printing in 1699.

Copper is a relatively soft metal, which makes it easy to work. However, with each pass through a press, definition of the marks on the copper plate will be reduced. This is particularly problematic for fine lines, which will affect the overall quality of the print. Consequently, re-engraving of details may be necessary after many passes of the plate through the press.