‘Lithography’ is a compound word made up of two Greek words:
lithos meaning ‘stone’ and
graphein meaning ‘to write’. Lithography is a method of printing developed in the 18th Century that went on to dominate the world of printing until the development of digital technology.
Printing with Oil and Water
Oil and water famously don’t mix. Technically, they are said to be immiscible. The applications for printing using this immiscibility was first explored by Alois Senefelder. In 1796, the experimental printer painted an image on smooth limestone using oil-based paints. He then submerged the stone in a weak acid wash of diluted gum arabic, before removing all but a tiny layer of the original oil with turpentine. The next stage was to roll printer’s ink over the stone. The oil-based ink adhered to the oily image but not to the wet limestone. The inky stone was then ready to be pressed onto paper to recreate the desired image as many times as was needed.
Chromolithography
At Colour Print, we are the experts when it comes to multicoloured printing, but Senefelder was a pioneer. He quickly recognised the potential for his process and he developed a technique for printing posters with more than one colour: chromolithography. This time-consuming process involved printing each colour separately on to the page. The biggest problem to solve was that of alignment - making sure each colour was printed exactly where it needed to be in relation to the previous and subsequent presses in other colours. The technique proved popular and was adopted widely in the early 19th Century as a way of creating vivid theatrical posters.
Modern Lithographic Printing
These days, we use aluminium rather than limestone and technical advances mean that alignment doesn’t pose the problem it once did. Techniques borrowed from the world of photography have led to the development of offset lithography - the method by which most books are printed. However, the basic principle of the immiscibility of oil and water is still the backbone of all lithographic printing methods.
We are proud to be continuing in the tradition of Senefelder and we offer lithographic printing services at very reasonable prices. Give us a call on 01603 488001 to find out more.
