Wood-Block Printing / A Description of the Craft of Woodcutting and Colour Printing Based on the Japanese Practice

by F. Morley Fletcher

Fig. 13.—Position of register marks.

Fig. 14.
Register marks.

Fig. 14.
Register marks.

The corner mark, ABC, is made by cutting from A to B and B to C, with the knife held perpendicularly, and its flat side against the line, then the shaded portion is cut with a flat chisel, sloping from the surface of the block at AC to a depth of about 1/16 inch along AB and BC. The straight notch, EF, is similarly cut, first with a perpendicular knife along EF, and then the shaded portion is chiselled sloping down to the line EF.

Fig. 15.—Register marks (section of).

In section the two register marks would be as above.

The register marks must be smoothly and evenly cut so that the paper, in printing, may slide easily home to its exact place.