Steel Engraving - Process

Process

Most engraving is done by first laying out a broad, general outline onto the plate. This is commonly referred to as etching. After this step is complete the artist can move on to actually engraving the work. The tool most commonly used for engraving is the burin, which is a small bar of hardened steel with a sharp point. It is pushed along the plate to produce thin strips of waste metal and thin furrows. This action is followed by the use of a scraper to remove any burs, since they would be an impediment during the subsequent inking process. It is important to note that engraving must be done in the reverse or mirror image so that the image faces the correct way when the die prints. One trick of the trade was for engravers to look at the object that they were engraving through a mirror so that the image was naturally reversed and they would be less likely to engrave the image incorrectly. Steel plates can be case hardened to ensure that they can print thousands of times with little wear. Copper plates cannot be case hardened but can be steel-faced or nickel-plated to increase their life expectancy.