How were maps produced?
Woodcut
The woodcut is a raised surface printing technique. The best wood for a wood cut comes from a slow growing, fine grained tree such as pear or cherry. The board should also be quartersawn, and as a woodcut is printed using a printing press, a board with a thickness equal to the height of type, ca 3/4 of an inch, is used. This allows for the use of type and woodcut at the same time when printing. The tools of a woodcutter, the cabinet scraper and knives, gouges and chisels of different sizes and forms, have changed little since the Middle Ages.
In a fifteenth century workshop a woodcut went through several different hands during its production. The preparation of the board was the job of an apprentice. The cutting of simple images was the work of a journeyman. The Master or a experienced journeyman cut the lettering or extremely fine work.
After the apprentice cut the board to size and scraped the printing surface smooth, the basic frame work of the map drawing provided by the mapmaker was transferred in reverse (mirror image) to the board. There were several methods used to achieve this reverse image.
One method was to trace over the drawing with charcoal. The drawing was then placed face down on the board and burnished, so transferring the charcoal to the board. It is important to note that with the transfer of the image the positioning of the cities and the lettering be must be correct, as the woodcutter must begin his work with these.
It is important to note that only the placement of the text and not the text or font type are transferred. The cutting of the letters is, with the exception of guidelines to define the size of the letters, executed freehand. A complete transferal of the text is pointless since if the carver makes a mistake by cutting a letter to large or small he must erase and then redraw the following letters to retain the correct spacing.
After the lettering is finished the carver continues by carving the rivers, followed by the mountains and forests. If the map also shows sea or ocean, the coastline is cut at the same time as the rivers, and the waves are left until last.
Die Schnitzarbeit muss vorsichtig gemacht werden. Der Schnitzer darf nicht zuviel Holz wegschneiden, da er immer darauf achten muss, daß genügend Holzfläche für die nächstgelegene Linie übrig bleibt. Der Schnitzer darf keinen Fehler machen, da sonst ein neues Stück Holz in das Brett eingesetzt werden muß, um so den Fehler korrigieren zu können. Das Problem dabei ist nicht, das Stück Holz einzusetzen, sondern es zu befestigen. Zur Zeit des frühen Kartendrucks, 1472 bis ca. Mitte des 15. Jahrhunderts, gab es nur zwei Methoden, solche Ersatzstücke zu befestigen. Bei der ersten Methode wurde das Ersatzstück mit Knochenleim eingeklebt, der allerdings nach einiger Zeit austrocknete. Durch den Druck der Presse zerbröselte der trockene Leim und das Holzstück fiel heraus. Bei der zweiten Methode wurde ein Ersatzstück zugeschnitten, das ein wenig zu gross war. Es wurde getrocknet, um es zu schrumpfen, dann eingesetzt und befeuchtet. Dadurch dehnte sich das Stück wieder aus und hielt durch Spannung im Holzschnitt fest. Wurde der Holzschnitt zu lange oder zu trocken gelagert, lockerte sich das Ersatzstück wieder und fiel heraus.
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