Copperplate
Copperplate refers to the use of inscribed sheets of copper in printing. The etched sheets of copper are inked and then have paper rolled over them to produce a copy.
In
Southeast Asia, the use of copperplate for important documents was a stage in the
writing system; they served as durable documentation in a climate which destroyed other documents. In
Java, for example, the copperplates were heated until they were soft, and then inscribed with an implement. Skill in metalwork in Southeast Asia apparently spanned multiple metals during the epoch of copperplate inscriptions.
A famous example is the
Laguna Copperplate Inscription.
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A sample of computer-generated copperplate writing. |
Copperplate, or
English round hand, is also the name of a style of
calligraphic writing, using a sharp pointed nib instead of the flat nib used in most calligraphic writing. Its name comes from the sharp lines of the writing style resembling the etches of engraved copper. Copperplate script was especially prevalent in the 18th century.
This style of calligraphy is different from angled nibs, or italic, in that the thickness of the stroke is determined by the pressure applied when writing. Formal copperplate script is written at a 70-degree angle.
A slang use of the term has recently appeared in Australia. In the 1980s, the state of Victoria prescribed a new form of handwriting to be taught to children in government schools, which lacked the loops and curious capital letter forms that appear in standard
cursive. As a result, the term "copperplate" is sometimes disparagingly used to refer to standard cursive.
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Calligraphy
