Most illustrations on this site are the property of Luis Nadeau. You will find more information on the reproduction technologies illustrated here in Luis Nadeau’s latest edition of the Encyclopedia of Printing, Photographic and Photomechanical Processes.
The Nadeau collection consists of a library of approximately 1,000 hard copy volumes (and 3,500 eBook volumes) mostly in French, English, and German, related to the history and conservation of printing and photographic materials. Among the most interesting items, is a comprehensive set of the Penrose Annual (1895-1982). This is the only complete collection of the Penrose in Canada and one of two in North America. All 74 volumes (27,000 pp.) have been abstracted and indexed and will be the subject of an upcoming book in the near future. More information can be found on this site.
The collection of photographs began in the 1970s and was gradually expanded to include all forms of reproduction technologies, from ancient engraving methods to modern photomechanical processes. There are thousands of illustrations made by approximately 400 “different” printing, photographic and photomechanical technologies although admittedly, many of them differ only in name. The emphasis is on collecting items whose production methods are clearly identified.
The oldest item in the collection, a Sumarian cylinder seal, goes back approximately 4,000 years. It came from Iraq, through Syria. As with the other artifacts on this page, more information can be found in the author's Encyclopedia.
Sumarian cylinder seal made from agate stone, with an imprint on clay, ca. 1800-2000BC. 24.5x9 mm.
Other items of interest include a leaf from the Gutenberg Chronicle (1493) and other samples of incunabula including a fine typographical example of Nicholas Jenson (1477) and early manuscript work on thin vellum from a Friar’s Bible, from the 13th Century.
Leaf from a Friar’s small portable Bible, ca. 1275. Provenance: Ex collection Herbert Fleishhaker (1872-1957), San Francisco (banker & philanthropist), bought in Venice in 1929. 188x136 mm.
In the incunabula collection we have this interesting item. Nuremberg Chronicle, 1493.
A leaf from Hartmann Schedel, Das Buch Der Chroniken und Geschichten, Nuremberg, July 12, 1493. This Latin edition was followed by a German edition on Dec. 23, 1493. 40.5x27.5 cm.
Mellan’s Single Line Engraving Process. 1649.
Claude Mellan's Face of Christ, also known as The Sudarium of Saint Veronica (1649) is an engraving tour de force. The entire portrait is rendered using a single, continuous spiralling line that begins at the tip of Christ's nose and expands outward to the edges of the cloth.
Mellan achieved the illusion of depth, shadow, and facial features without any cross-hatching or traditional shading. Instead, he precisely varied the thickness and pressure of the burin (his engraving tool) as he rotated the copper plate, creating "swelling" lines that darken the image where needed.
The spiralling line is estimated to be approximately 150m (about 500ft) long if it were stretched out.
Single line engraving on copper by Claude Mellan, 1649. 416x315 mm.
Single line engraving on copper detail by Claude Mellan.
The Diderot Collection. 1751.
This collection from the famous Encyclopédie Diderot et D'Alembert consists of approximately 40 plates related to printing and engraving technologies.
Gravure en taille-douce. T. VII, Pl. 1. 130x210 mm
Physionotrace. 1816.
Physionotrace by Quenedey, Paris, 1816. It made use of a complicated pantograph system to engrave a copper plate in intaglio. Image 60 mm, case 90 mm.
The photography collection includes specimens of early color processes such as the Uvachrome, a dye-mordanting process that relied on copper compounds as mordants for transparency dyes.
Uvachrome transparency, early 1900s, 85x100 mm. The Nadeau collection is rich in items that were originally supplied by manufacturers as specimens of their products. This greatly simplifies the identification process.
The three-color carbro process was preferred by high-end color studios during the period 1920-1960. The process, being very difficult and expensive, was almost exclusively used for illustrations that were color-separated for photoengraving in popular magazines and catalogs. These photographs are highly desirable today partly as they were usually unique and made with permanent color pigments that will last for centuries.
Three-color carbro portrait of Gina Lollobrigida, ca. 1950. Photographer unknown. 375x294 mm.
The collection also has samples of Vivex prints from the Art Deco era and Nadeau’s own permanent three-color carbon prints, reputed by many to be among the most beautiful color prints ever made, on account of the unique, thick relief (~0.5 mm) in the dark areas of the pigmented reliefs. Such prints (PDF) of Dean Brown's work, are in the collection of the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona, in Tucson, U.S.A.
A three-color Vivex carbro print. Photographer unknown, ca. 1937. 295x205 mm.
Other photographic pigment processes represented in the collection include gum prints, bromoils and Fressons such as this beautiful print by José Ortiz Echague.
José Ortiz Echagüe, “Aquadoras Andaluzas.” Fresson, prior to 1955. 420x300 mm. Ortiz Echagüe’s Fresson coating equipment and formulas are now owned by Luis Nadeau.
Photomechanical technologies are well represented in the Nadeau collection. These include early Albertypes.
Albertype (collotype family) showing the interior of Albert's printing establishment in 1870. This original albertype was inserted in the June 24, 1870 issue of Photographic News. Under magnification this print has no visible sign of reticulation unlike later collotypes.
The first practical half-tone process was commercialized in Canada by the Leggo brothers.
Leggotype from a photoengraving block, 1871. 160x240 mm.
There were many different types of photogravure. The following is a rotogravure produced from a square half-tone screen.
Robert Demachy, “Behind the scenes.” 1905. 115x127 mm on 122x135 mm.
The following is a fine example of the earliest photomechanical process used in England:
"The Cedars, Monmouthshire," etched after a photograph by Roger Fenton (?), using the photogalvanograph process as developed by Paul Pretsch, published in Photographic Art Treasures, 1856. 215x175 mm.
This photochromy, by Léon Vidal, is a good example of early color printing in France.
Photochromy (photochromie) Léon Vidal, ca. 1875. "Paix de l'Autel du Saint-Esprit. Face Postérieure. XVIè Siècle.” 168x121 mm.
The most popular photomechanical process in use since the end of the nineteenth century has been the half-tone, originally adapted to letterpress (relief) printing. The process is also known as photoengraving.
A duotone photoengraving reproduction of a photograph by Puyo, 1905. 120x135 mm.
Woodburytype. The most beautiful photomechanical process ever invented.
Woodburytype of Victor Hugo. Ca. 1880. The image is screenless and looks like an actual carbon photograph. Image 94x75 mm.
Stamps and the study of printing technologies.
We are fortunate that several museums recognize the importance of preserving the knowledge of the technologies that have profoundly impacted our lives over the years.
Postage stamps have provided an exceptional source of knowledge about culture, history and geography for millions of people worldwide since the 1840s. The technologies used to produce them have been the subject of a substantial amount of technical literature, as outlined in our Encyclopedia.
However, nothing can replace the physical examination of the actual equipment used to produce the objects we admire and collect. This principle extends beyond postage stamps to postcards, maps, plans and books that utilized similar technologies.
The Musée des Timbres et des Monnaies in Monaco houses the equipment used for many of its stamps since 1885. It is one of the few places globally where serious students, collectors and curators can study the various steps involved in stamp and printed material production. If you are in the Monaco-French Riviera area, we highly recommend a visit to this museum.
Main exhibition room at the
Museum of Stamps and Coins of Monaco
