Dotted print (criblée)
Dotted print / dotted manner / manière criblée / metalcut
A traditional technique of the goldsmith long before engraving for printing purposes was developed, criblée was also used to make the earliest metal prints on paper. Criblée was a method of dotting the plate with a hand punch; with punch and hammer; with a serrated, flatheaded tool called a matting punch; with various gouges; or, sometimes, with a hollow, circular-headed ring-punch. Criblée plates were relief printed like woodcuts. On most dotted prints, a black background dominates a fine lacelike design.
An early example of a dotted print (c. 1460–1470):
See also:
The British Museum
Related ILT article: Renaissance Metal