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Antique Prints - Background, Collecting and Conditions
 Botanical Publications 
Botanical books and publications were printed to serve many communities: "professional" horticultural/floricultural, botanists, gardeners, medical, or "general" communities. Their range includes treatises on an individual plant families (camellias, seaweeds, ferns) to catalogs of cultivated plants (Paxton's Magazine of Botany) to catalogs indigenous plants (Sowerby's English Botany) to catalogs of wild growing regional plants (Bennett's Flora of the Alps) to general gardening (Amateur Gardener). General interest Victorian publications occasionally featured a flower/plant. Travel and exploration books sometimes catalogued the flora and fauna of new lands.

 Collections 
"Vertical" collections have a specialty: a plant (Lady Slipper), a family/genus (orchid, lichens), a publisher (Curtis, Paxton), an artist (Cooke, Weinmann, Edwards), a region (Britain, Australia), a time period (1700's) - or a combination of those (Curtis magnolias). "Horizontal" collections cover a wider variety of general interest (common flowers, cultivated plants, vegetables) and are broader in scope.

 What to buy 
In general, for publications that are still widely available, you should look for the earlier plates in the best possible condition. As publication becomes more rare, condition becomes secondary, but should not be ignored. As colored plates are frequently difficult to restore, collectors should only buy prints in "poor" condition if it's an "absolutely must have".

 Paper 
The paper used in antiquarian/old books/publications includes handmade "laid" and "wove" paper, machined stock, china (glossy white) and modern. Handmade paper may vary in thickness, and publications made from handmade paper frequently vary in foxing (and other defects) from page to page. Machined papers are more consistent in composition and thickness.

 Paper Defects 
Defects in paper include those by age: spotting, foxing, toning / general discoloration, ofsetting (text from facing page transfers to print); those by handling: tearing, tears with loss, markings, indentations, creases; those by storage: dampness/water stains, mold; and those during publication: incomplete pages, poor quality paper. Over time, pages in books tend to get marginal foxing around the perimeter, and plates in the front and back of a book tend to have more foxing than interior pages. Books from public libraries (Ex library) tend to have more paper handling defects, whereas books from private libraries (Ex libris) tend to be in better condition.

 Compilations 
Many botanical publications were issued on a periodic basis (usually monthly) and had subscriptions much like current magazines. At year-end, the publishers would compile excess/stockpiled inventory and re-issue in book form. The books could contain six moths, one year, or two years' of periodicals. The original publication may be trimmed to fit into a more standard book size. Individual subscribers may take their periodicals and bind them independently - sometimes with unusual mixes of timeframes or subjects. Books from a private library are frequently identified with plates on the inside covers marked "Ex-libris".

 Compilation Defects 
The compilations were trimmed during publication. Sometimes, the plates were trimmed into the print area or into the printing at top/bottom of plates.

 Impression / Color 
The impression is the actual striking of the paper to produce an image. Color can be applied through the printing process or hand applied after printing. In some cases, some color was applied through the printing process and finished by hand later (hand finished). Coloring can be either contemporary (applied about the same time as the printing), modern, or somewhere in-between (later coloring).

 Impression / Color Defects 
Common defects include: poor placement of the impression on the paper, small margins, light / incomplete strike, poor coloring and inconsistent/incomplete plate mark (for copper/steel engravings).

 Printing techniques (Method) - Coming Soon 
Aquatint
Mezzotint
Engraving (burin, wood, copper, steel)
Etching
Lithography
Chromolithography

 Condition Description 
Excellent - No defects: Clear plate marks, all writing visible and strong, strike is complete, coloring is clean and bright
Very good - Light defects, not affecting printed area. May have inconsistent margins, marginal foxing, general toning, light creasing, etc.
Good - More severe paper defects such as tears, or lighter defects which affect the print area, such as foxing and spotting or light fading
Poor - More severe defects affecting the printed area: stains, foxing, tears and fading.

 Condition Notes 
Prints described in a condition may have further qualification: a print may be described as excellent with slight marginal foxing, indicating that has all the overall qualities of excellent condition, but has stated defect(s). The type of defect is generally noted in the condition - a print in very good condition may suffer from marginal defects but have no toning.

 Example 
Anne Pratt authored a series of books which described the Flowering Plants, Grasses, Sedges and Ferns of Great Britain. These books were published many times from the 1850's onward. In the early printing, plates were lithographed in a single color and the remainder of the color was hand applied (hand finished). Subsequent printings (1880-1900) used chromolithography, and the color is not as vivid as the earlier printings. Although early and later prints can be described as excellent, there is still a difference in the overall look and feel of the print.



Last Updated 03-Sep-2010
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