Wiki #5 Woodblock Printing

Woodblock printing was a technique used in East Asia dating back further than 220 A.D. The image or text intended for printing were carved into wooden blocks, which were then coated with ink and applied to the paper or cloth. The image would then appear where the ink did not transfer onto the cloth or paper, and would be within a rectangular border. This technique was later replaced by techniques in which the image was raised and ink applied to it, instead of applied around it, reducing the amount of ink required. It was also replaced by movable type set, which allowed the same stencil to be used in many different combination, instead of carving a new block for each word or letter needed.