210 



ART OF PRINTING FROM STONE. 



Chalk or sunk 

 method. 



Its use. 



Relief. 



Flat method. 



Application. 



Advantages. 

 Ctlerity, 



Number of 

 fopressions. 



polished anew ; and thus it may be made to serve for thirty 

 or forty different works. 



The sunk, or chalk method differs from that termed in re- 

 lief only in having the stone much more corroded by the 

 nitric acid. This is chiefly employed for prints, and has the 

 advantage of remedying that uniformity of tint, which is 

 common to prints from the chemical press. It is natural, 

 that the higher parts should take less or the ink, and the 

 lower parts more, so that the impression has less monotony ; 

 a defect hitherto seemingly inherent in this mode ot printing. 

 For this method too the rollers most be stronger and heavier. 



As this method is more expensive, it is given up: yet for 

 prints, where some degree of effect is required, and more 

 clearness, it is to be preferred. In this method nearly pure 

 nitric acid is employed. Indeed when the art was first in- 

 vented, pure nitric acid was always used; but soon after, to 

 save expense, it was diluted with water; and since that it 

 has been employed more or less diluted, according to the 

 effect wished to be produced on the stone. 



For the method in relief, as it is called, nitric acid with 

 half water is used. 



In the flat method less nitric acid is used. It is not to be 

 supposed, that the surface is quite plain in this way ; but the 

 lines are very little raised, so that they can scarcely be per- 

 ceived to stand above the ground but by the finger. 



The works executed in stone are; 1, imitations of wood 

 cuts: 2, imitations of engravings in the dotted manner: 3, 

 drawings: 4, music: 5, all kinds of writing: 6, maps: 7, 

 copperplates. 



The advantages of this method are, that it has a peculiar 

 character, which cannot be represented by any other mode; 

 while it gives a tolerable imitation of other methods; and 

 still more the -celerity, with which it can be executed. A 

 subject, that an artist could not finish in five or six days on 

 copper, may be engraved on stone in one or two. While & 

 copperplate printer is taking off six or seven hundred im- 

 pressions, two thousand may be printed in this way. A cop- 

 perplate will scarcely give a thousand good impressions, while 

 in this way several thousands may be taken off', and the last 

 be as perfect as the first. Thirty thousand have been taken 



off 



