How Making Paper by Hand and by Machine Impacts Its Characteristics

Cathleen Baker

A live-only Q&A session scheduled for Wednesday, 28 October, 12–1 p.m. ET, via Zoom.

Registration has closed; all seats are full.

Paper is a vital component of the descriptive bibliographical examination of books and other artifactual descriptions (e.g., those for maps and works of art). To understand the various characteristics of traditional Western paper made by hand and machine—for instance, marks made by the wire screens of hand moulds or machines, paper grain direction, and differences in felt and wire sides of paper—it is necessary to become familiar with how these papers are manufactured. This presentation covers the processes by which paper in the West was typically made by hand up to the end of the eighteenth century and by machine during the nineteenth century. It also covers the various ways that these characteristics can be seen in paper.

Cathleen Baker is hosting a Q&A session on “Paper as Bibliographical Evidence: How Making Paper by Hand and by Machine Impacts Its Characteristics” primarily for applicants to G-75 “Paper as Bibliographical Evidence.” Before the Q&A session, everyone is expected to complete three readings that will be distributed as PDFs to the group: Introduction; Part 1: Handmade Paper; and Part 2: Machine-Made Paper. Participants are encouraged to submit questions to Cathy in advance of the Q&A.