T206 Ghosts... on the front!

[Runscott]

Originally Posted by steve B

I must admit I'm a bit lost on that one. I've never seen that, even on modern cards or other printed stuff.

I have a few theories , but nothing I'd feel confident enough about to put out there.

Maybe after I've given it some more thought.

Steve B

Hey, if you are confident enough to send these theories to me in an email, please do....most of what we have regarding the printing process is theory anyway.

Scott <=== feeling relief after escaping inexplicable urge to post in the memorabilia forum.

[steve B]

I actually found a great resource, a book about plate lithography originally published in 1917, and having a 1922 version online.

It was made for lithographers to help them transition to the then new technology. It's a bit dry reading (Read anyone but me will be bored into a coma) And very technical, including recepies for some of the chemical processes.

And it's got an entire chapter on making transfers to use in laying out plates, one of the areas I wasn't familiar with.

Not so much theory as just learning the old ways.

There's a link to the book in the T205 thread.

Steve B

[Abravefan11]

I don't believe that the reverse Piedmont impression on the Nicholls card posted above was a result of the printing process. It most likely happened during the storage of the card.

Many different examples of cards have been shown with storage transfers that are mistakenly called wet sheet transfers or thought to have occurred at the time the cards were printed. In most cases the ink from one of two cards stored together will transfer to the other. The exact variables that cause this are not known.

The Nicholls card above has a similar effect but slightly different. Instead of the ink from one card transferring to the other, the ink from the Piedmont back protected the blue sky of the Nicholls card. Where the heaviest portions of the Piedmont's blue ink pressed against the Nicholls the sky did not discolor. The areas of the Piedmont back that had little to no ink did not protect the sky from discoloring.

If it was a result of printing more of the Piedmont back would be visible in other areas of the Nicholls card.

[Exhibitman]

Wouldn't all of the colors transfer if the migration occurred post-printing?

[Abravefan11]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Wouldn't all of the colors transfer if the migration occurred post-printing?

Most storage transfers occur when the back of one card bleeds onto the other. The backs were printed in a single color. Here's an example posted in another thread.

[Runscott]

Originally Posted by Abravefan11

Instead of the ink from one card transferring to the other, the ink from the Piedmont back protected the blue sky of the Nicholls card.

Nice, Tim!