Is it a woodcut, an etching, or a lithograph? Is it an original stipple engraving or a photogravure reproduction? Is the colour printed or added by hand?

This comprehensive guide has established itself as the essential reference book for print and book collectors, dealers in prints and illustrated books, art librarians, art professors and students, and everyone interested in graphic art.

The book simplifies accurate identification of any printed image. Included are manual methods, as well as the mechanical processes that make up the vast majority of printed images. In all, some ninety different techniques are described, both monochrome and colour. Of particular value are the many details of various techniques under strong magnification.

The one great change during the last twenty years has been the high-quality inkjet and laser prints that are now part of everyday life. How can one tell whether an attractive image is valuable in its own right or merely a reproduction? As cheap printing processes become more sophisticated, it inevitably becomes harder to identify correctly an image of this kind. Bamber Gascoigne’s new observations in this area, added for this revised edition, will prove invaluable.