Dictionary Definition
copperplate
Noun
1 a fine style of handwriting based on the
writing used on copperplate engravings
2 a print made from an engraved copperplate
3 an engraving consisting of a smooth plate of
copper that has been etched or engraved
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Noun
- A copper plate, either etched or engraved, to make a recessed pattern.
- A print made from such a plate.
- A style of handwriting based on that used on such prints; English round hand.
Quotations
-
- 1999: “The village school was a fine school....He learned his reading and had a fair copperplate hand.” — Stardust, Neil Gaiman, page 36 (2001 Perennial paperback edition).
Extensive Definition
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 notable example is the
Laguna Copperplate Inscription of the Philippines.
Copperplate script and typefaces
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 prevalent in the 18th century.This style of calligraphy is different from that
produced by angled nibs in that the thickness of the stroke is
determined by the pressure applied when writing, instead of nib
angle in relation to the writing surface. Formal copperplate script
is written close to a 90-degree angle when linking letters.
A slang use of the term recently appeared in
Australia. In the 1980s the state of Victoria
prescribed a new form of handwriting which lacked the loops and
curious capital letter forms that appear in standard cursive to be taught to children
in government schools. As a result, the term "copperplate" is
sometimes disparagingly used to refer to standard cursive.