IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING SURFACES OF PAPER
Year: 1840

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, J, HENRY
MARTIN, of Morton Terrace, Camden Town, in the County of Middlesex,
Painter, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Thirtieth day of March, in the third year of Her reign, did, for
Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Henry
Martin, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I,
the said Henry Martin, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said Henry Martin, my exors, adñiors, or assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term
of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING SURFACES OF PAPER;" in which said
Letters Patent is contained a proviso, that I, the said Henry Martin, shall
cause a particular description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's
High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the
same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Henry Martin, do hereby declare the nature of my Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement thereof (that is to say) :-
My Invention relates, first, to a mode of preparing surfaces of paper by
combining thereon a coating of oil paint with subsequent embossing.
Secondly, my Invention relates to a mode of preparing surfaces of paper in
the manufacture of paper-hangings, by combining thereon a coating of oil
paint, and afterwards printing or producing thereon the required pattern for
paper-hangings.
Thirdly, my Invention relates to a mode of preparing surfaces of paper
by combining thereon a coating of oil paint, and subsequent glazing or
planishing.
And, fourthly, my Invention relates to a mode of laying on a coating of
oil paint on paper by means of rollers.
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And in order to give the best information in my power, I will proceed to
explain the process as performed by me, and which I have found fully to answer;
and I will first explain the means pursued by me for obtaining a coating of
oil paint on paper in order that it may be finished by other process in order to
fulfill the objects of my Invention; and it is important that the coating of
paint should be as even and as smooth as possible, and the paints I employ are
those usually applied in house painting, and of such color as it is desired the
paper should assume. It is well known that in the use of oil paint, as it is
employed in the common and usual way of paintaing with a brush on any
surfaces, and especially when employed on a surface of paper, that certain
disagreeable appearances are visible when such surfaces are examined, the
surface having degree of coarseness, and this renders the use of oil paint
objectionable as a fit material for practical purposes on paper where a good
surface of color is required. I therefore employ means to overcome these
objections, and to render the surfaces of paper, in preparing them with oil
color, fine and smooth, and of a more agreeable appearance. I take a sheet
or piece of paper, plain or tinted, for example, a piece of paper twelve yards
long, or of other convenient length, and I lay this on a flat table of the length
and breadth of the paper; the paper may be sized or not. If sized, one or
two coats may be given, using either common or superior size for the purpose.
The preparation of the paper by painting I prefer to be done by one of the
two modes hereafter explained, that is, either by the usual manner of ordinary
house painting, and in this operation I use the common paint brush, and with
this I work out the oil color as evenly as possible. Immediately after this I

page_text: take a dry brush of a small size, having a surface of a moderate degree of
hardness, as a clothes or shoe brush, with which I rub or scour, in a light
manner, all over the painted surface, giving the brush a circular motion so as
to obliterate the marks of the paint brush. I then take a dry brush, known
as a softener, it being generally made of long fine hair, that of a badger is
best, and I pass this softener lightly over the painted surface, which gives it an
additional smoothness. If more than one coat of paint is put on, this process
should be repeated, but as I sometimes use paper having a tinted or colored
ground produced from colored pulp, or by the subsequent application of water
color, in such cases I consider one coat of paint sufficient, provided such tint
resembles or is made suitable for the color of the paint which is to be applied,
and such tint, in fact, forms a preparation for the oil colors. Or, secondly, by
preference, I lay the oil paint or color on to the paper by passing the paper
between two rollers, together with an endless felt or other fabric. This felt
in its revolution is supplied with oil color as it passes into a trough, and under
a roller partly immersed in the oil paint or color therein, a scraper being
placed to act upon the felt as it ascends, to prevent it being too much charged.
with oil paint or color, and serving to keep the supply of color regular. The
paper may be passed between the rollers in this manner two or three times,
according to the quantity of color it may be deemed necessary to lay on. By
this mode of laying on the oil paint I produce a fine and regular surface.
Having obtained paper coated with oil paint by the above or such like means,
I submit it when dry to the operation of embossing, by passing it between
properly engraved rollers, or I use dies, as is well understood; by this means
I am enabled to produce embossed papers having a very rich surface, far
superior to paper when simply embossed without a coat of oil paint, and
applicable to various useful purposes.
In manufacturing paper-hangings, the paper having received its coating of
oil paint of the color the ground or surface is intended to be, it is next to be
printed by blocks or other surfaces, as is now generally practised and well
understood, or such surfaces as are suitable when simply printing paper with
or without a colored surface of distemper or water color. By this means I
am enabled to obtain paper-hangings of great beauty, and such as will allow
of being washed when hanging on walls or other surfaces. When making
paper-hangings in imitation of marble, I prefer to resort to that mode wherein
the design is produced on a liquid, as is well understood, and I prefer to take
the impression on to the painted surface of the paper before that painted
surface is dry; by this means the effect will be improved, as it allows of
softening off by a brush.

page_text: As to that part of my Invention by which I produce a glazed or enamel-like
surface on paper previously coated with oil paint, I use plain or tinted or water
color undergrounds, as may be deemed convenient, the oil color surface being
laid on by the above or other suitable means, the oil paint being such as is
used for flatting; but I prefer, as respects this class of papers, to use the
oil color or paint in a thick or "round" state, and it should be thinned wholly
with turpentine, in the same manner as if to be used for flatting. After the
oil paint has been put on the paper, and some time has elapsed to allow of
the turpentine to evaporate, the color becomes set, and will allow a smooth
knife to be passed over without injuring the surface, and when it is in such
state it is to be glazed as early as possible. For this purpose I lay the paper
upon a woollen cloth, or cotton velvet, or other similar soft material, to form a
firm but soft bed. I then take a pallet knife or a trowel having a good
smooth or polished surface, and lay it flat on the painted surface of the paper,
and pass it along with a slight pressure; the color being set it yields to the
pressure, and a glaze is thereby produced, or other means may be resorted to
for glazing. When the surface is dry, it may be heightened by the well-known
mcans used for glazing or planishing, or the paint on the paper may be dry
before planishing; and I may here remark, that such prepared and planished
or glazed paper will be found to offer a beautiful surface to receive impressions
of copper and other plate engravings, as also for paper-bangings and other
purposes.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which
the same is to be performed, I would have it understood that I do not claim
the applying a coat or surface of oil color on paper generally, nor do I claim
the printing or producing suitable designs or patterns on paper when not
previously coated with oil paint or oil colour, nor do I claim embossing
papers when not previously coated with oil paint or oil color, nor do I claim
planishing or glazing paper when not coated with oil color or paint, such
processes being well known and in use; but what I claim is,-
First, the mode of preparing surfaces of paper by combining thereon a
coating of oil paint with subsequent embossing, as herein described.
Secondly, I claim the mode of preparing surfaces of paper in the manu-
facture of paper-hangings, by combining thereon a coating of oil paint, and
afterwards printing or producing thereon the required pattern, as herein
described.
Thirdly, I claim the mode of preparing surfaces of paper by obtaining
thereon a coating of oil paint, and subsequently glazing or planishing the same,.
as herein described.

page_text: And, fourthly, I claim the mode of producing a coating of oil paint on paper
by means of rollers, as herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Martin, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of September, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Thirtieth day of September,
in the year of our Lord 1840, the aforesaid Henry Martin, came before our
said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
5 above written.. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according
to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.