Part 1

Transcriber's Note: The Table of Contents is located at the back of the book on page 139.

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THE PROGRESS OF THE MARBLING ART

FROM TECHNICAL SCIENTIFIC PRINCIPLES

BY JOSEF HALFER

WITH A SUPPLEMENT ON THE DECORATION OF BOOK EDGES

Translated by Herman Dieck, Philadelphia

BUFFALO, N. Y.: THE AMERICAN BOOKBINDER CO. 1894.

Copyright, 1893, By LOUIS H. KINDER.

PREFACE

TO THE FIRST EDITION.

No product finds so many and ample applications as color. Nearly every trade requires it for the decoration of its products so as to adapt them more generally and pleasantly to the present demands.

The art of marbling is that branch of our trade, in which color is brought into use for the decoration of bindings, yet it has not found the desirable general introduction into our book-binderies because practical men have not so intently employed their time and endeavors, to overcome the difficulties, which resist its general application.

Who could solve easier and more correctly than the mechanics, to whom these difficulties and obstacles offer themselves in practice? He is the only one to find the remedy, scientific men not possessing sufficient technical knowledge. Only he is ready and able to stand up for such special trades, to work and to fight for them, who is himself interested and who not only learned to understand the art of marbling from former instructions and traditions, but from his own practical experience.

To him only, will it be possible to gain by close study true points, on which to further develop the whole subject.

My original plan was, not only to remove the technical difficulties of the art of marbling, but also to ascertain the correct colors from the mass at present manufactured, for the purpose of manufacturing marbling colors.

But in this I did not succeed as easily as I expected. Every color manufactory possesses another system to produce its products, and after thousands of experiments I was finally forced to resort to chemistry for the purpose of gaining a knowledge of the raw products viz: earths, metals, acids, bases and their conditions and qualities in order to study their compositions and precipitations, the coloring composite of lake colors and their bodies, and to subject them to investigation on their effects on marbling size.

This was a tiresome work which demanded much patience and pertinacity. During these investigations, I have learned to know the influence of sizing upon colors and how it hindered or expedited a beautiful marbling or comb edging.

Through these experiments I unexpectedly gained a certain knowledge which enabled me to overcome the technical difficulties of the marbling art. The greater the difficulties the more they aroused my zeal to surmount them and the greater my joy when victory was won. During my investigations I saw, that not the color itself, but its body, to which the color is bound either in a natural or chemical way, forms the important part of the colors necessary to our purpose. No branch puts so many critical demands upon the preparation of colors as the art of marbling, because, aside from the most careful grating which can only be done by using the best of painter's colors, there must be a great power of divisibility and excellent covering qualities so that the pigments do not turn pale by the propelling power of the ox-gall expanding on the size, but retain in a dry state, their full lustre. It is therefore impossible without a more thorough knowledge of the chemistry of colors to find from the legion of colors, which are thrown upon the market, the ones best adapted to our art. So much more so as, in most recent times, by simplification in the manufacture of most colors their quality, for marbling, has most essentially deteriorated.

Colors which are used for painting, lithography and printing with the greatest success may be entirely unfit for marbling. The cause is not to be found in their preparation for our purposes, but in the manufacture itself, as the qualities, which are indispensable are not known.

The main attention in the manufacture is directed to the finding of colors free from poison and which will not fade, when exposed to light, if they are intended for a wholesale consumption in painting and the graphical art.

All colors which we intend to use for marbling purposes must have body, because bodiless colors become mixed with the size and run off from the paper in marbling, they therefore can be designated as useless for our purpose. The most important composite parts of colors for marbling are certain substances, among which hydrates of argillaceous earths, tin and lead oxides and sulphate of barium are named as the best.

A great number of coloring matters of organic origin, which are soluble in water, have the propensity in mixing with a solution of salts of lead, tin, and argillaceous earths, with a metallic oxide to form a compound which is soluble with difficulty (and is termed insoluble,) when the latter is precipitated from the solution by an alkali. The precipitations which are obtained in this way are known as lake dyes. Of greater importance for the quality of the marbling colors are the physical conditions of these precipitates, they are either crystallized or amorphous, the former not possessing any value to us.

The serviceable, i. e. the amorphous precipitates, by their quality of great divisibility give excellent colors.

Among the great number of numeral colors there are many which in spite of their amorphous properties are bad marbling colors, such as the compounds of copper, zinc and arsenic. Often it depends upon the manner of manufacturing, even if the color have a good body whether it can be used by us, as, for instance, white lead and barium both of which can be produced as good or useless colors.

The general idea, that light colors are the best, is erroneous, even heavy oxides of metal being excellent colors. Not in weight but in divisibility rests the excellence, for instance I mention pure oxide of iron, cadmium, sulphate of mercury and mercury iodide. These are all heavy metallic oxides and good colors.

Exclusive of the colors the different ways of sizing are most essential parts of marbling. They exercise a great influence on the success of beautiful edges and for that reason I directed my closest attention to them. The more homogeneous and the smaller the viscosity of the mucilage of the sizing, the better for comb, peacock and bouquet edging.

Marbled and veined edges demand more viscosity of the mucilage, which, if the sizing does not possess it, is usually formed during the first stage of decomposition, when the normal time for using it for comb edges has passed. I will mention further on the ox-gall and the sprinkling water, which are indispensable on account of their binding and expanding powers for the purposes of marbling.

It is an easy manipulation to prepare ox-gall, so that it does not decompose, but on the other hand a much greater attention must be paid to the binding and expanding powers of the same, as they may have, in spite of its excellent qualities for color, by insufficient caution in their handling the most deleterious influences on the colors as well, as on the sizing and in most cases are the causes of the failure of the edging. There are several substances, which possess qualities similar to ox-gall and many others which possess only its expansibility.

To the former belong resins which are insoluble but which can be dissolved by the addition of ammonia or borax, to the latter fatty acids of alkali, which we know by the name of soaps and which I shall describe in the article on ox-gall.

Sprinkling-water is mostly used on account of its greater expansibility and its propensity to form circular spots on the marbling ground, (sizing) for veined edges, or as an addition to the ground color of the marble edge. Although it does not possess the binding power of ox-gall for colors in such a degree, it is nevertheless, worthy of our attention. It was the aim of my investigations during many years to bring this all into a harmonious ensemble, and produce a fine and paying work.

In composing this book, I have aimed to arrange it in such a way, that it will be a guide not only to the uninitiated, but also to the practical mechanic. For this reason the book will only give such methods of the marbling as will be crowned with sure success and which have given me satisfactory results.

As books, which are intended for practical men, can only obtain an intrinsic value by combination of facts, gained by practical experience, with scientific principles, I have attempted to attain this object and I hope to have created a lasting work of our trade-literature.

Budapest. JOSEF HALFER, BOOKBINDER.

May, 1884.

PREFACE

TO THE SECOND EDITION.

It is a pleasure and a satisfaction to every author to write the preface to the second edition of his work, as the sale of the first proves sufficiently, that it has found recognition and commendation.

In the second edition, I have given the results of my uninterrupted studies and the new observations I have made during the last five years. It is my hope not only, that I shall make the study easier to the inexperienced, but also to offer to the experienced marbler a practical compendium in cases of frequently arising difficulties.

The publisher of this new edition has added to it a number of samples, which were collected under my supervision and which certainly will be highly welcome.

I hope and wish that the new edition with its practical arrangement, with its description of my newest observations and with its tables of samples and the other additions and improvements, will find the approval of the trade and will increase the number of friends and patrons of the marbling art.

Budapest, Very respectfully, JOSEF HALFER.

October, 1890.

HISTORICAL.

HISTORICAL.

Every branch of industrial art possesses its champions and originators, who have employed their whole intellectual and physical powers to solve problems for the purpose of enhancing and furthering their material welfare.

Often from small beginnings, within a longer or shorter period of time, great enterprises spring into existence, which greatly further our development in culture, science and arts, and are blessings to the whole civilized world. The material welfare arising from them renders it necessary that new champions continuously enter the arena and combat in the cause of progressive industry.

The industries of color and paper making which play most important parts in the art of marbling shall be the first subjects of my essay.

The paper industry which is very highly developed will have a much better future on account of its possibilities in the line of improvement. To-day, in the iron-age, we speak of a paper-age, and for good reasons, because there hardly passes a year which does not bring new discoveries, showing the extraordinary adaptability of paper. One branch of the paper industry which to-day is considered as an especial part of the industry is the manufacture of colored paper, the origin of which, as far as our literature is able to state, extends as far back as the first part of the last century.

From it springs the art of marbling, which in latter years was introduced into our trade.

The manufacture of colored paper makes a second branch of industry indispensable and one which stands on as high a stage of development as the paper industry; this is the manufacture of colors, which deserve the greatest attention on our part on account of the marbling art.

There is hardly a second branch of chemistry which is of such a great old age, historically proven, as the color industry.

We hardly know of a nation on the whole globe which does not make use of color in some way. The use of color for the purpose of embellishment and adornment dates back to historical times. Nature itself, by the beauty of the colors of her flowers and minerals acted as a teacher in the artistic development of the human race.

Egyptian wall paintings show richly developed forms and figures adorned with multi-colored fabrics.

This is a proof that the Egyptians not only understood the art of the manufacture of colors but that they also knew the much higher art of fastening the color on textile fabrics, i. e., the art of dyeing.

In olden times for the coloring of objects, mineral colors which occur in nature the result of a decomposition of metals and earths and had only to be put through a sieve and washed to adapt them to the painters use, were exclusively used.

To alchemy, which was the origin of Chemistry of to-day, we owe a surprisingly large number of artificial mineral colors, for the reason that with predilection it brought metals, earths and mineral compounds within the sphere of its researches which were aimed at the production of gold, but which all were ineffective in this direction. But the time and labor, which were employed in these investigations, were not thrown away. By alchemy an immense number of chemical compounds became known, without which knowledge the chemistry of to-day would not have reached its exalted stage of perfection.

Exclusive of mineral colors several organic colors came into use, the most being applied in the dyeing establishments as they were bodiless colors and at that time the art of binding them to metallic oxides was unknown.

By and by it became known in what way to bind the coloring matter of plants to bodies and to make them serviceable in the art of painting and the graphic arts. Since that time progress in this field has been so rapid that we gaze in astonishment upon the achievements of the color chemistry of to-day.

The progress which developed industrial art and caused it to flourish, was enhanced by a new and highly important invention, the industry of tar colors.

It is wonderful how man through the vigor of his intellect, tears from nature her hidden treasures which have lain in obscurity for thousands and thousands of years.

Who would have thought, that the antediluvian vegetation with its splendor of thousands of colors should celebrate its resurrection in aniline colors which by their splendid qualities of richness and intensity over-shadowed everything before them? It is a pity that we are only able to use these colors in limited numbers in our trade.

Up to this time they are used more for dyeing purposes, because they are without body and possess two apparently insurmountable proclivities, 1st, they do not mix so intimately with oxides of metal as the organic coloring stuffs of plants and they cannot for a long period withstand the influence of light.

In the meantime it is to be hoped with confidence, that science will soon find the solution for these difficulties. Already the forerunners of body colors have been discovered, a few which could withstand light have followed, as geranium lake in which the coloring matter is only bound to oxide of lead by surface adhesion. Furthermore scarlet lake, which, although bound to oxide of lead, has been put in such a state that it does not run and lastly the artificial krapp-(madder) lake and indigo, which have been produced from coal-tar and nearly equal to the good color lakes of the animal and floral kingdoms.

The main attention in the production of these colors is directed to the end of finding those which are free of poison and will not fade, to make them serviceable to the historic art of painting.

For the aniline color there is therefore a wide field open to experiment.

Whether our interests and demands in regard to colors will be fulfilled is a question of time.

Even the newer productions of the animal and vegetable kingdom already differ in quality from those indispensable to the art of marbling.

I recommend to my honored colleagues to read my book with attention, so that the intended gain shall not be missed and the beautiful art of marbling may attain a larger circle of friends.

THE AUTHOR.

THE SIZE.

THE SIZE.

The first process in marbling is the preparation of THE SIZE on which the colors are to be floated.

By the name of size is meant a consistent glutinous mass, which is obtained by boiling or dissolving with water certain bodies derived from the vegetable kingdom.

Mucilage is found in many plants, especially in the outer skin of seeds, also in many roots, barks, stems and leaves, but its solubility and consistency are very much varied.

Generally the mucilage of plants is classed among the gums; but there is a large difference from them in this, that it will not give a perfect, diaphanous and homogeneous solution, but only swells in it to a thick, massy and viscous fluid, which is similar to starch paste. It is composed of small quantities of gum, starch, sugar and consistent plant-mucilage. If prepared from certain plants, for example the algae of the sea, it also contains small quantities of iodine.

Starch swells in hot water, while with mucilage the same result is achieved by using cold water.

Smaller quantities of mucilage are found in every plant, but larger in gum tragacanth, carrageen or Iceland moss, salep, the leaves of mallows, or of colts foot or tussilage, the roots of marsh mallow, seeds of plantago-psyllium, (flea-bane) linseed and quinces.

Of this number but few are of interest to us, which I shall mention further on.

The density and proper consistency of the size depends on the bodies, from which the viscous or glutinous substance is derived and also from the quantity of water, in which it is dissolved. The consistency of the size is also materially influenced by the temperature, the warmer, the less substantial and the more pliable; the colder, the more consistent and stiff it is.

A good marbling size should be an entirely homogeneous mucilage, i. e., a solution, which should be free of any vestiges of seeds or strings undissolved. A less viscous size is more adapted to the production of comb-edges, while a more viscous size to the production of marbled or veined edges. The consistency of the mucilage of every kind of size will soon experience an essential change, which becomes apparent by the fact, that the size becomes less consistent, until finally an acid reacting fluid remains, which has no more value for marbling purposes.

This chemical process is produced by the transformation of the sugar parts of the dissolved starch contained in the size into acid and lactic-acid. The more starch and sugar that is contained in the size, the sooner the acid will be generated, while pure plant mucilage containing but little sugar and starch will resist much longer disintegration.

All plant-mucilages, which are soluble in cold water, i. e., swell, will keep much longer than those dissolved in boiling water, because the soluble parts remain inclosed in one cell which is only broken by the boiling heat or by the formation of acid. This is the reason why they only swell up in cold solution.

A homogeneous mucilage will serve for marbling much better, than that, which is produced by swelling, because the latter has an injurious influence on the fine distribution of color for veined, comb and other edges. Although the surface of such a size seems to be smooth, the eye will discover on closer investigation the undissolved bodies in the small granules of the size.

The mucilages obtained by swelling are always milky-cloudy and never permit the colors distributed upon them to expand with the same purity and smoothness as the homogeneous varieties, on account of the small granules hindering the drawing of the colors on their surface. On the other hand there are varieties of size, which are very viscous on account of a too homogeneous mucilage and therefore from their nature are not adaptable to any kinds of edging which must be drawn by the stylus. The colors can simply not be drawn on the surface, because this very viscous mucilage is drawn along by the stylus instead of being cut by it.

In investigating the different varieties of size I have noticed a very surprising action of the extremely viscous mucilage, which nearly confused me for the moment. I have scalded with boiling water plantago-psyllium (flea-bane) and have beaten it with wicker-rods tied together so as to produce in a better manner, the mucilage found on the outside of the seed. After cooling it off, I filtered it through a linen cloth and poured it into the trough but have not waited till the very viscous thread of mucilage parted after the trough was filled to a certain height, but have placed the vessel on the floor and to my utter surprise the thread of the size spread out and reached the vessel on the floor, becoming gradually thicker until finally the whole size flowed in a white stream with great velocity over the rim of the trough (2 inches high) and returned to the vessel standing on the floor until the trough emptied. This was done in a very short time. The cause of my surprise was in the very consistent mucilage which took along ever-increasing quantities of the size and finally entirely emptied the trough.

Prepared colors, which on a less viscous size are normally distributed expand with a greater velocity to a greater extent on a more viscous size and therefore become pale.

For such kinds of sizes the earth colors are preferable but only for marbled edges.

The normal strength of size can be discerned without araometer or other recommended apparatus. My opinion is that 2/5 of an ounce of good carrageen moss to a quart of water are sufficient, as carrageen excels all other glutinous bodies by the quantity of mucilage contained in it. To test the correct strength of the size pour some of it into a flat vessel, as a plate or dish, and throw a drop of color upon it; if the color does not spread out, but rather sinks down a drop of ox-gall must be added. Renew the test and so on until the color spreads out to about 2 inches, then take the stylus and draw the color into lines as in producing comb-edges. If the size be too thick the color will be drawn along by the stylus and cannot be cut clean through. On the other hand if the size be too thin it can be seen immediately in its quivering and the running of the color, which cannot be drawn into straight lines. In the former case some clean water must be added to the size, in the latter case which, if the size be well boiled, seldom occurs, thick size must be added by boiling more. The real consistency of the size is so easily learned in practice that a mere feeling with the fingers will be sufficient.

The preparation of the colors is carried on separately on a small part of the size, so that the whole quantity is not rendered useless. If the colors are rightly prepared in proportion to their expansibilities in relation to each other, the new size is to be poured into the trough and the marbling may begin.

The mistake which is commonly made in marbling is, that too little attention is paid to the size and color. Frequently the size is soiled and the colors are spoiled by adding too much gall before an edge is produced. For this there are generally three causes, either the size is too fresh, too thick or the colors have been prepared on the same size by which the edges are to be produced.

Each size which is boiled should only be taken into use after perfect cooling and after several hours have elapsed, since in a warm state it would not permit the colors to expand even by adding a large quantity of gall. Only after the expiration of ten or twelve hours after boiling will it have the correct quantity of mucilage and then only the size possesses its full value. This time having elapsed, the size is filtered through a cloth and is then ready for use.