Printing Press

[KieranB]

I'm currently looking into building a full scale working replica of an elizabethan printing press. Does anyone here know anyone who as attempted this, or perhaps where I could find some good reference material - if so it would be greatly appreciated.

Actually any information on any size of press would be great

Thanks
Kieran

[MedicKitten]

The museum in the reconstructed Globe Theatre in London has a full-size working press for teaching purposes. We used it this fall, and it works very well. As for Professor Karim-Cooper, she might be able to help you get access to it and i'm sure they could give you the plans they used to build it.

[KieranB]

Ah yes, I hadn't thought of contacting the Globe Theatre. Thanks very much :)

Kieran Byrne

[John Waller]

Try contacting Roger Emmerson at the Living History Register via lhr AT pidham DOT vispa DOT com. I'm sure he will know a man who has an early press.

[KieranB]

Thanks very much, I've emailed Roger.

[Lord High Everything Esle]

The working press that was made for the programme "What the Tudors did for us" is in strore at the St Bride's Printing Library

http://www.stbride.org/

Nigel Roche the Librarian (nigel@stbrideinstitute.org) (and Tudor Baker at Kentwell Hall) has a plan to set up a bookmaking workshop in a few years which will incorporate, I think, Paper making, type setting (and presumably type casting), printing and bookbinding.

I havn't spoken to him about this recently so I don't know how far his plans have evolved.

Why do you want to know?

[John Waller]

LHEE, I only ask out of interest but did the Tudors use cast metal type? I have always assumed that hot metal came in later and that at that period it would have been wooden type. But as I say that was only my assumption based on no reseach whatever. Always interested to learn.

Regards

JW

[Lord High Everything Esle]

It was Caxton (1422?-1491) who introduced moveable cast type into England and printed the first book in English in 1474. But you are old enough to remember him.

[John Waller]

LHEE,
Thanks.

Jw

[KieranB]

Aye, very true, good ol' Caxton. Good with the technical elements, not so good with the art of words some would say.

I asked because I'm intending to build my own replica for a living history portrayal - on the occassions where I can get a room to turn into a workshop. I may also do some school and museum talks with it, if i can built to be easily transportable. I'm sure it will be a good while yet until I do the portrayal, but I want to start on the press sometime soon.

[Lord High Everything Esle]

Kieran

Jack Green lives near Newark and I'm about 2 hours drive away. I'm sure we would be interested in helping out in some way before the Summer rush starts. Let us know your plans.

[KieranB]

Yeah that'd be great, I'd appreciate any help at all. I'll let you when I have some more definite plans sorted out

Cheers
Kieran

[Lord High Everything Esle]

Here is a picture from the Book of Trades - one of the few 16thC illustrations of a printing press.

[Kate Tiler]

Hi Kieran - I'm a print enthusiast too & I live in Bingham, just outside Newark - I have a small cast iron Albion printing press that you are welcome to come & look at, photograph & take measurements off if you like - send me a PM and arrange to come over. The design hasn't changed all that much since Tudor times, plus for various reasons I have lots of metal type you could practice with till you get some authenti type cast.

I also have a spare platten - the lumpy flat bit that gets pressed down onto the type (you can tell I'm up on all the technical bits, can't you ) - but made out of MDF, wax & wood, ready to be cast into iron - it was a CDT project for an ex of mine a very long time ago - if it was any help you could borrow it & cast a copy for your press.

As Will (LHEE above) says, him & Jack are useful people to know

Oh and I've just remembered - believe it or not I have a kit for making a replica Caxton press upstairs in the attic!!! It's a scale working model apparently, I bought it on ebay from America with visions of doing what you say - taking it round to schools - I'm an artist working in schools & I was in a school in Leicester doing printmaking with 60 x 10 year olds on Thursday last week! But needless to say, its still in the attic...

Get in touch

[Kate Tiler]

Sorry Kieran I just realised I just Tiggered you - end of a very long day & I'm very tired so you got all my tired ramblings! Hope I didn't overwhelm you - didn't mean to

[Lord High Everything Esle]

Hi Kieran

You've got us all excited now!

I'm coming to stay with Jack for a few days leading up to the Swinderby Antiques Fair (4/5 April) I will be there on the Sun 2nd and Mon 3rd playing in his workshop and going to the fair on the 4th. Jack is going to the fair on the 5th.

So if you want to meet up with us at Kate's or Jack's and/or go to the Swinderby fair - much more fun with a group since you can phone one another up to tell them what you've found for them.

I've picked up all sorts of stuff there including a lot of my bookbinding kit. It would be a good place to find a large screw thread - they are a great trouble to make.

[Kate Tiler]

Sorry Will - I'll be putting my tile mural up at Newark hospital the first half of that week! (Mon - Weds) See you after then I'm going to Newark at the end of that week to see George, my antiques lady.

[Lord High Everything Esle]

OK Kate
|I would be very interested in looking at this Caxton kit of yours. Any chance of getting it over to Jack's before Swinderby?

Who made it?

[Lord High Everything Esle]

Kate
Good luck with the mural by the way. I know you have put a lot into it. Don't forget to post pictures.

[KieranB]

Well thanks for all your enthusiasm, I really appreciate it.
Don't worry Kate, you didn't overwhelm me - I'd love to have a look at the Albion press. And if I could borrow the platten that would be great, and very much appreciated.

I'm sure Jack and Will are useful people to know, I probably should know them already lol - though i've only been re-enacting for a few years.

I won't be able to go to the Swinderby Fair LHEE, since I'm working :( A screw thread would be very handy get hold of - one thing i certainly don't want to make lol. But if you're around on the Sunday I might be able to pop over and have a chat

Cheers
Kieran

[Kate Tiler]

OK I will climb up to the attic & rummage for the printing press kit but don't you two go all airfix model on me!!!

I don't want to come round & find Jack has assembled it using his 'special glue'!

Kieran, just glad to know another enthusiast

[Lord High Everything Esle]

Why don't you come round Sunday 2nd April in the evening. After our hard work in the workshop we will be only to happy to be entertained by your plans.


Edited by Kate - sent details in a PM to Kieran!

[Kate Tiler]

Will I just used my superpowers & edited your message - I copied the whole thing to Keiran in a PM - I would rather Jacks's details weren't so publicly viewable - this site gets its messages retrieved by search engines etc and as Jack has no access to the internet I'd rather he had the option of not having them laid so bare!

Kieran - Jack's website address is:

http://www.jackgreene.co.uk

[KieranB]

Thanks, any suggestions as to what time in the evening? Is 5:30 okay?

[Lord High Everything Esle]

Thanks Kate
I try not to put email addresses online for that very reason.

[Lord High Everything Esle]

Thanks, any suggestions as to what time in the evening? Is 5:30 okay?

Yes that shoud be fine. We might be eating then but I'm used to the public seeing me do that in this Zoo we call re-enactment. As long as you don't mind.

[KieranB]

lmao, very true. There have been events where I really have felt like I'm in a zoo

Kieran

[Lord High Everything Esle]

Hi Kieran

Remember Sunday 5.30 pm

Will PM with address again.

[gregory23b]

JW - as before, moveable metal type was developed by Gutenberg (a contention he nabbed it off someone else) in he 1450s, Caxton brought it over to England.

Wooden block books were still made in Europe even during the time of the moveable type, the V & A has a lovely German or Flemish (can't remember) 1460 Biblia Pauperum that is handleable in the reading room.

The 15thC was still a Westminster centric world of print in England, being the cultural backwater were were at the end of the 15th we imported all of our paper from France and Germany and the one mill we had in 1480 or so (Hertford) could not keep up with demand.

The Tudorbethans really developed printing in England, famously John Day.

Kieran B
The thing to note with the early presses and also their later cousins the albions is the torque that is generated.

The first presses are screw driven, you will see that they are almost always portrayed as braced against a roof beam, ie they are not really free standing as the pressman is generating a lot of leverage, which would otherwise pull the machine over.

Albions are cam (takes the place of the screw) driven, but torque is still generated, hence the massive heavy eagles or other weighty parts over their mechanism.

The end result for both Albions and screw presses is the same, the mechanisms are not.

I borrow an Albion for my larger cuts and I am glad of it, but it is screwed into the ground.

I believe the St Brides' press also has a set of Caxton type, more important than the press really, ie even if you didn't have a press to use at events, it is feasible to produce documents.

You would also need a team of about three or four, pressman, ink man, typesetter/compositor, editor.

I would also recommend Moxon's 'Mechanik Excercises in the Whole art of Printing' 17th C but the most comprehensive treatise on early print, the kit is the same and the processess too. It is a real eye opener on the complexities on the print trade as well as the huge amounts of kit that are needed.

Best of luck, sounds like an ace project.