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Laid Paper Laid paper refers to how the paper was made, on which something was later written or printed. It is usually composed of a pulp mixture of cotton and linen fibers, which is commonly known today as rag paper, referring to its content -- it is somewhat thicker than the normal typewriter or computer printer paper which most of us know. A fine screen of copper wire is used in this process -- it is composed of fine parallel copper wires, reinforced with wider spaced copper wire at right angles to them -- the spacing of the reinforcing wires is usually regular, about one inch apart , but it can vary by workshop -- the pulp is pressed onto this screen to dry, which leaves an impression of the wire screen. This impression may easily be seen over a light box, or halogen desk lamp, sometimes it may even be visible to the naked eye, if one looks hard enough -- it may take some practice, though --
the above example clearly illustrates this wire pattern, or waterlines, which remains on the hand made paper. Specialized ateliers / workshops were set up by print shops, monasteries, and private makers over the centuries, and such handwork adds to the collectible value of the finished product, aside from the historical worth they may possess in and of themselves. Official documents, books, art works such as etchings and lithographs, maps, postage stamps and other paper ephemera were produced in this manner, and examining them for evidence of having been made on laid paper is one of the identifying characteristics used by experts in the field. |
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Watermarked Paper Another identifying characteristic that is usually found associated with laid paper is the watermark. The watermark usually identifies the workshop in which the paper was made -- I have also seen them on art prints designating that the work was printed on paper made by the artist's studio. Some artists, such as the prolific Spanish meistro, Salvador Dalí, used a certain paper maker for most of his prints. The following is a sample of a Spanish watermark from about the 17th century, and you can plainly observe the waterlines of the laid paper, as well as the watermark
Paper Size The size of the original sheet of laid / watermarked paper varies from maker to maker. On a full sheet, the equally spaced waterlines (corresponding to the reinforcing copper wire screen) will run vertically, in the long direction of the paper itself. Anything printed or written on this vertical paper is said to be in portrait mode -- when the paper is used with the long side horizontally, it is termed to be in landscape mode. But in many cases, the paper is cut in half, a half sheet, and depending on what use will be made of the halves, the reinforcing waterlines may run horizontally or vertically. The paper may be further cut into smaller size sheets, for use in missals, prayer books and other small tomes or note pages, official recipts, announcements / fliers, certificates, postage stamps or whatever, and the direction of the laid paper lines would vary accordingly. In these smaller books, one may have to examine many individual pages to find a watermark, and it will most probably not be complete on any single page. The sizes of the original laid paper and its subdivisions vary not only from workshop to workshop, but also from country to country, depending on the apparatus employed, and it is a fascinating study. Books depicting the most common and important watermarks throughout time would be most helpful to anyone investigating this subject. Although I have not researched the distant origins of watermarks, I might assume that the earliest paper makers used them to identify their products, much as ceramics marks, even from ancient China, pinpoint their origins. |
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