A fine art print is original only if the artist both conceived and had a direct hand in the production of the print. An original print should be distinguished from a reproduction , which is produced photomechanically, and from a restrike , which is produced as part of a later, unconnected publishing venture. Laid paper is made by hand in a mold, where the wires used to support the paper pulp emboss their pattern into the paper. This pattern of closely spaced, crossing lines can be seen when the paper is held up to light. Laid paper often has a watermark.
Wove paper is made by machine on a belt and lacks the laid lines.
False laid lines can be added to machine-made paper. Though wove paper was invented in the eighteenth century and laid paper is still produced, the majority of prints made prior to 1800 are on laid paper and the majority of prints made subsequently are on wove paper. In this type of print the printing ink is absorbed by the greasy design on the stone and is transferred to the paper under light pressure. Metal plates are used for intaglio prints and for some lithographs. A platemark is the rectangular ridge created in the paper of a print by the edge of an intaglio plate.