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Woodblock Printing



Also known as block printing is a Chinese technique to print text, images, or patterns in antiquity as a method of printing on textiles and later paper. It originated from China and is also used widely throughout East Asia.

Woodblock printing has existed in China since before 220 AD. China's earliest surviving prints use a method of printing on cloth. During the Tang Dynasty, woodblock printing was the most common method of printing books and other texts, as well as images until the 19th century. Except for the block books produced in the 15th century, the majority of European uses of the technique for printing images on paper are covered by the art term woodcut.

Mahayana Buddhism was a major influence on the rise of printing. According to Mahayana beliefs, religious texts carry intrinsic value and are seen as powerful talismans that can ward off evil spirits. Buddhists could accumulate merit by copying and preserving these texts. A consequence of this was that the concept of printing and its advantages in replicating texts quickly gained popularity among Buddhists, who, by the 7th century, were printing ritual documents with woodblock.

It requires half a dozen skilled craftspeople who possess printing skills, dexterity, and a sense of teamwork. In a relief printing process, each page or impression is carved out of a wooden block, leaving only some areas and lines at the original level; these are inked and shown in the print. To prepare them for engraving, the blocks are cut to a thickness of two centimeters from the fine-grained wood of pear or jujube trees and then polished with sandpaper. An image draft is brushed onto ultrathin paper and examined for errors before it is transferred to a block. As the inked design is cut into the wood, the artisan will produce raised characters, which will then be inked. To begin with, the blocks are tested with red and then blue ink, and then the carving is corrected. To print the final image, the block is covered with ink and pressed by hand onto paper when it is ready.

Books printed by block engraving may be printed in one of several traditional styles, bound in conventional fashion, or reproduced from ancient Chinese manuscripts. Due to the expertise and knowledge of the master artisans, this handicraft is still conducted by a number of printing workshops today.

References

(https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/china-engraved-block-printing-technique-00229) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodblock_printing#China_2)


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