Engraving Machine [Klischograph]
Maker and role
Rudolph Hell, Manufacturer
Production date
Circa 1955
Circa 1960
Object detail
Accession number
2004.326
Maker
Production period
Description
Cast iron and steel photo engraving machine, electronic scanning. Metal box construction on 4 metal legs. A lifting handle on one end. A control panel is located on the step above the handle. There are 4 knobs and a dial for adjusting the screen and engraving. At the end of the control panel is a single knob for controlling the "positive" and "negative".
Colours: Green, brown and black.
Colours: Green, brown and black.
Brief History
The Klischograph photo engraving machine, invented in 1951 by Rudolf Hell (1901-2002) produces printing plates for the reproduction of photographs, used primarily in newspapers. This machine was imported from Germany in 1960 and initially used in the production of the Thames Star newspaper. Mark Venables purchased it from the Thames Star and used it at his Mount St. John Press to prepare blocks for printing books and art newsletters until 2002.
The Klischograph is an early example of the use of electronics in printing. It scans a picture line by line, and the resulting scan is used to control a steel stylus, which engraves cuts into the surface of a printing plate. This results is a screened printing plate for letterpress printing or for gravure printing.
There were many of these machines throughout New Zealand, especially in provincial newspaper plants. A picture could be made into a block in about 30 minutes and printed the same day instead of sending it to a photo engraver in a city and waiting up to a day or two for the block to return.
The Klischograph was used by letterpress printers after training and in conjunction with standard letterpress equipment. It forms a link between traditional printing, which remained relatively unchanged over a period of 400 years, and the electronic age. This was one of the last developments in letterpress printing.
Rudolf Hell was born on 19 December 1901 in Eggmühl near Regensburg and studied at the Technical University in Munich. His PhD dissertation on ‘Aircraft Sighting Airborne Equipment’ provided the basis for his first invention: a direction finder for pilots. He is also recognised as the inventor of a teleprinter (the Hellschreiber), and then, in 1956, the fax machine, as well as the Chromagraph in 1963, which is considered to be the first digital scanner.
The Klischograph is an early example of the use of electronics in printing. It scans a picture line by line, and the resulting scan is used to control a steel stylus, which engraves cuts into the surface of a printing plate. This results is a screened printing plate for letterpress printing or for gravure printing.
There were many of these machines throughout New Zealand, especially in provincial newspaper plants. A picture could be made into a block in about 30 minutes and printed the same day instead of sending it to a photo engraver in a city and waiting up to a day or two for the block to return.
The Klischograph was used by letterpress printers after training and in conjunction with standard letterpress equipment. It forms a link between traditional printing, which remained relatively unchanged over a period of 400 years, and the electronic age. This was one of the last developments in letterpress printing.
Rudolf Hell was born on 19 December 1901 in Eggmühl near Regensburg and studied at the Technical University in Munich. His PhD dissertation on ‘Aircraft Sighting Airborne Equipment’ provided the basis for his first invention: a direction finder for pilots. He is also recognised as the inventor of a teleprinter (the Hellschreiber), and then, in 1956, the fax machine, as well as the Chromagraph in 1963, which is considered to be the first digital scanner.
Marks
Klischograph 1150 / Fabrik-Nr 624097 / Made in Gemany Maker's Plate
HELL / 10 reliefstichel Nr. 1100 / fur Klischograph / Dr.-ING RUDOLF HELL - KIEL / Made in Germany Printed
HELL / 10 reliefstichel Nr. 514B / fur Klischograph / Dr.-ING RUDOLF HELL - KIEL / Made in Germany Printed
HELL / 10 reliefstichel Nr. 1100 / fur Klischograph / Dr.-ING RUDOLF HELL - KIEL / Made in Germany Printed
HELL / 10 reliefstichel Nr. 514B / fur Klischograph / Dr.-ING RUDOLF HELL - KIEL / Made in Germany Printed
Credit Line
Rudolph Hell. Circa 1955
Circa 1960. Engraving Machine [Klischograph], 2004.326. The Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT).
Circa 1960. Engraving Machine [Klischograph], 2004.326. The Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT).
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