Picked these up today. One is a printing block from Bamfords farm machinery AKA JCB now. (Joseph Cyril Bamford) The other is completely unknown of a ship- any ideas or just a random ship?. Very intricate pattern. Love to hear any thoughts. Thankyou
I worked as a graphic artist in an old photoengraver's shop that made cuts like these. First job after leaving Art School.
I saw a reference on the net to "Conigree light beacons" but lost it somehow. The ship might be an early light ship to guide shipping. However it looks like a characterization of the "Golden Hind" to me.
Had a quick Google and didn't come up with much. Mathias Goes was the first to bring print to Antwerp in the 15th century. A son Hugo came to London and then York in the early 1500s. The ship is meant to represent progress and commercial enterprise. I can't find anything about Conigree if that's what it says. Can't find anything about more recent descendants or companies using this image. So, some beginner questions- What date did metal blocks like this replace wood cuts? If this image was used in the 15th century, what's a printing block doing here now?. Why would it be recreated for a company that doesn't exist any more? When did this form of printing cease? Still googling but any help would be great as without you I'd still be googling ships!.
@KSW - Your metalcuts are twentieth century. Lots of early images were re-used over the years - some were even re-used within the same book, as in the Liber Chronicarum. Metalcuts were used extensively from the first decade of the sixteenth century forward in the West, exempli gratia: https://sokol.co.uk/book-of-hours-5/ Thereafter the use of woodcuts - which wore down and broke quickly - fell out of favour. .
Just been having a look, some are incredibly intricate and must have been highly labour intensive to create the early blocks. The Bamfords one can be dated to 1950. Presumably these printing blocks became pretty much obsolete after that?
With the advent of digital printing, nearly everything became obsolete. For an idea of what real printing once was, have a look at Aldus' 1499 printing of Francesco de Colonna's of Hypnerotomachia Poliphili. A past sale: or just sift through Google Images: https://www.google.com/search?q=Hyp...hVJwFkKHfKsCF4Q_AUoAXoECBIQAw&biw=800&bih=471
It was actually the almost universal acceptance of offset lithography, and finally web (no, not that web!) flexographic printing that sounded the death knell for the photoengraving trade, some decades before the digital era.
I didn't know there were and still are light ships when the waters weren't suitable to build a light house. Thankyou, I love the random information I pick up on this forum and the twists these threads take.
