Etchings

Etching is the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio in the metal. Printing the plate is done by covering the surface with ink, then rubbing the ink off the surface, leaving ink in the roughened areas and lines. Damp paper is placed on the plate, and both are run through a printing press; the pressure forces the paper into contact with the ink, transferring the image.

As an intaglio method of printmaking it is, along with engraving, the most important technique for old master prints, and remains widely used today.