In the papermaking work rhythm, the vatmanimmersed one mold in the vat while the coucher, his partner, couchedthe previously formed sheet off the other mold onto felts.
Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images were taken of the cross-section of the GE watermarked paper. Two magnifications, 500× and 1000×, were used on both the plain paper and the chemically watermarked areas. The images produced are disappointing, as the material is indiscernible from the fibers. However, it is apparent that the chemicals “swell the fibers somewhat and close up the sheet” .
He points out that currentpaper research sees the basis of paper history to lie not in datingthe watermark per se, but instead dating a sheet of paper producedby a specific mold.
The author attempts correlating the dates of unwatermarked papersfrom the earliest era of European papermaking with chain lineintervals and laid line frequencies.
Vaurio, F.V.E.1964. Paper product with chemical watermark and means for making same. U.S. Patent #3,140,959. Assigned to Customark Corporation, Appleton, Wis.
THE TECHNOLOGY of chemically watermarking paper was first patented in 1959 by Frans V. E. Vaurio for the Customark Corporation, a subsidiary of the Fox River Paper Corporation (now Company) in Appleton, Wisconsin. The Customark Corporation remains the sole patent holder for chemical watermarking of paper, though it licenses the use of the technology to other mills. Since the development of the procedure, it has been used exclusively for the watermarking of stationery letter stock and envelopes. In 1988, approximately 6.5 million sheets (13,000 reams) of paper were chemically watermarked by the Fox River Paper Company alone . Paper conservators in the near future should expect to routinely treat papers with chemical watermarks in archival collections and perhaps in modern art pieces.
It is from papyrus that the word paper comes from. Although papyrus sheets were similar to paper in terms of function, being laminated sheets they were technically more like a mat and therefore not the same as the papers of today. Similar processes were developed in other lands - in Central America during the 2nd Century AD the Mayans fashioned a similar product for bookmaking. In the Pacific Islands, a paper was made by beating a fine bark over specially shaped logs to make clothes and ritual objects. However, none of these sheets would qualify as true paper today.
A project of documenting and identifyingwatermarks for an exhibition catalogue at the National Gallery ofArt showed us that there is much to learn about the study andinterpretation of watermarks in paper.
“Watermarking” generally refers to a localized design, name, word, or date found in a sheet of paper. Strictly speaking, a watermark is a design. Smaller secondary names, words, and dates in the corners or opposite the main design are more accurately referred to as countermarks. However, the term “watermark” is used in this paper in the broader application, referring to the process of marking rather than to the content of the mark. The first watermarked Western paper dates from the 13th century. A cross and circle motif/design (Italy, 1282) is considered to be the first known Western example. Watermarks have not traditionally occurred in Eastern papers, although more contemporary examples exist. Watermarking originally might have been intended as an esthetic enhancement, a mark of quality, or a proprietary mark for the papermaker or the wealthy donor or client. Similar types of information, such as a particular brand of paper, manufacture from a specific mill, or depiction of a logo for a business or organization, are conveyed in watermarks today. Watermarks also relay historic information that can help date or geographically place a paper, thus validating a manuscript, document, or piece of art. The history and development of watermarks has been extensively researched. (See the bibliography for a brief listing of publications on the history, manufacture, and design of traditional watermarks.)
Watermark designs are created by sewing metal wires or soldering metal stencils onto a wire screen. In making paper by hand, the wire, known as a mold, is dipped into the wet pulp slurry is in a tub known as a vat. When the mold is removed from the vat, the excess water drains by gravity from the slurry. The fibers are distributed over the mold surface and deposited between the raised wires. In making paper by machine, the stock is run over or under the dandy roll, a wire cylinder to which the design is attached and which displaces the wet fibers in the area of design. Designs may also be impressed by localized pressure between metal or rubber rollers or dies. However the mark is produced, the result is an area in the paper that is less dense and thus more translucent when held in front of a light source. (See Further Reading for additional explanations of the variations and nuances of traditional watermarking.)
The high cost, inconvenience, and difficulty of producing intricate designs in conventionally manufactured wire or chiaroscuro watermarks were the impetus behind the invention of a simulated watermark in the commercial papermaking industry. The process of chemically watermarking paper allows for a greater diversity of applications at significantly lower cost. cites the costs and limits a0111s being approximately $300 for a dandy roll with a minimum order of 200,000 papers (400 reams) versus $20 for a chemical watermark pattern and a minimum order of 12,000 papers (24 reams).
The individual fibres were mixed with water in a large vat. Next, a screen was submerged in the vat and lifted up through the water,catching the fibers on its surface. When dried, this thin layer of intertwined fiber became what today we call paper. T'sai Lun's thin, yet flexible and strong paper with its fine, smooth surface was known as T'sai Ko-Shi , meaning: "Distinguished T'sai's Paper" and he became revered as the patron saint of papermaking.