Paper has been a key factor in communication and learning and can be traced back to 3000 BC. In those days, Egyptian craftsman cut the stems of the djet or tjufi plant (papyrus in Greek), a tall freshwater reed belonging to a group of plants known in Biblical references as bulrushes. The Egyptians cut the reed into thin strips, softened them in the muddy waters of the Nile, then layered them in right angles. They then pounded the mat into a thin sheet and left it out to dry in the sun. It was clearly a labor-intensive affair, and most likely won the respect of producers and consumers alike; for this reason, it was saved for very important records, fine art, and religious texts.
Image by John Hubbard
Letterpress Printing
It’s all been said before. It’s all been seen before. Nothing is new. Or at least this would be one way of looking at recent cultural output, which has amounted to a retrograde immersion in the past. ’80s remakes clog the movie process from pitch to multiplex, fashion revisits deceased designs, the clamor for the posthumous tomes of exhumed esoteric authors — all roads lead backwards.
13x18 Chander & Price Craftsman Press, Courtesy of Boxcar Press, Syracuse
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