A dictionary of the art of printing

"A dictionary of the art of printing" by William Savage is a technical dictionary and practical reference written in the mid-19th century. It surveys the craft of printing in detail, defining its terminology, tools, methods, and regulations for working printers, while also serving authors and librarians as a dependable reference. Readers should expect thorough entries on alphabets and type, imposition and presswork, punctuation and marks, historical shop customs, and new processes such as electrotyping, all presented in a clear, workmanlike style.

The opening of the volume begins with a transcriber’s note explaining how special characters, ligatures, and complex tables are represented in the digital text, followed by title matter and a preface that sets out the book’s aim: a comprehensive, practical guide built from long experience, with acknowledgments to contributors and sources. The preface underscores frequent comparison with Moxon to trace the art’s progress, compiles relevant statutes affecting printers, lists abbreviations and alphabets from authoritative grammars, and outlines substantial articles on imposition, records, electrotype, fine presswork, and wood-engraving—written plainly for apprentices and practitioners. The dictionary then starts under A with entries on Abbreviations (including an extensive roster of Latin and scholarly contractions), Accented Letters and diacritics, and Acts of Parliament (notably the stamp duty on advertisements), followed by concise notes on algebraic symbols and the English alphabet. Practical shop matters appear early, such as altering margins between small- and large-paper issues, and a vivid account of old printing-house “chapel” customs, fines, and the way-goose feast. The section concludes, in this excerpt, with a detailed treatment of Arabic script—letter forms, pronunciation, and vowels—breaking off amid a discussion of orthographical signs. (This is an automatically generated summary.)