Ex-libris signs

Vén Zoltán
ex-libris
probably etching, paper

The first list of symbols of techniques used in creating and printing ex-libris was adopted in 1958 at the Barcelona Congress of FISAE. However, a major revision was needed.
A revised list, given below, was adopted at the XXIX Congress, Frederikshavn DK, in August 2002.

A basic subdivision enables even relatively uninformed collectors to observe an ex-libris and determine in which of the three categories it belongs:
Intaglio - The ink is deposited from the grooves of the plate
Relief - The ink is deposited from the reliefs of the plate
Flatbed/stencil/electronic - The ink is deposited from the flat surface of the plate, through a stencil or screen, or electronically



Intaglio techniques (original)

C	Intaglio printing (blank); embossing (Chalcographia)
C1	Steel engraving
C2	Burin (graven or gouge) engraving, notably on copper
C3	Echting
C4	Drypoint
C5	Aquatint
C6	Soft-ground or other ground-based echting
C7	Mezzotint
C8	Intaglio engraving on linoleum, plastic & other materilas

Intaglio techniques (reproductive)

P3	Heliogravure (manual line and tone photogravure), Photogalvanography
P4	Commercial photogravure, rotogravure
P10	Echted steel printing (die-printing)

Relief techniques (original)

X	Relief printing (blank)
X1	Woodcut
X2	Woodcut engraving
X3	Linocut
X4	Relief-printed engraving or echted metal plates, notably metal cut
X5	Relief-printed metal plates created for intaglio printing
X6	Relief-printed engraving of other materials, for example synthetic ones
X7	(chinese) stone stamp

Relief techniques (reproductive)

T	Typography, letterpress
T1	Linotype, indirect letterpress
T2	Photoxylography, facsimile wood engraving
T3	Commercial rubber stamp
P1	Line block (cliché) with or without photography
P2	Half-tone, for example photozincography

Flatbed, stencil, electronic techniques (original)

X1	Autolythography
L2	Autography (transfer lithography)
L3	Zincography
L4	Algraphy
P8	Original photograph, hologram
S	Stencil, "pochoir"
S1	Original serigraphy (screenprinting)
S2	Mimeography (dye stencil)
S3	Katazome (oiled-paper stencil)
S4	Kappa (Katazome made with persimmon juice)
CGD	Computer generated desing

Flatbed, stencil, electronic techniques (reproductive)

P	Photographic reproduction
P5	Collotype
P6	Photolitography, process transfer lithography
P7	offset
P9	Serigraphic reproduction (photosilkscreen)
CRD	Computer reproduced design
Y	Photocopy

Others symbols

U	Technique not listed above, including Frottage, Chinese rubbing and collography
---/...	Number after the technical symbols = number of passages throuth the press
/mon.	Monotype
/ col.	Hand-coloured

Text source: www.kisgrafika.hu, www.fisae.org
Image source: www.ven.hu