a technique of engraving in which all effects are produced by variations in the width and density of lines incised with a burin.
a metal plate so engraved.
a print or picture made from it.
the art or process of hand-engraving in intaglio and copper plate
a plate so engraved
a print taken from such a plate
First recorded in 1800–10
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He gave it last week to Thomas W. Nason of Reading, Mass. for a finicky line engraving of two hayricks, a barn, a dying oak tree.
From Time Magazine Archive
The second book which I named, Heyne's Virgil, shows, though unequally and insufficiently, what might be done by line engraving to give vital image of classical design, and symbol of classical thought.
From On the Old Road Vol. 1 (of 2) A Collection of Miscellaneous Essays and Articles on Art and Literature by Ruskin, John
It appeared as though line engraving could not keep pace with the ever-growing demand for pictures, and was therefore combined with stipple to facilitate production.
From Engraving for Illustration Historical and Practical Notes by Kirkbride, Joseph
The whole work should be taken up again, and done by line engraving, perfectly; and wholly from Pre-Raphaelite designs, with which no other modern work can bear the least comparison.
From The Crown of Wild Olive also Munera Pulveris; Pre-Raphaelitism; Aratra Pentelici; The Ethics of the Dust; Fiction, Fair and Foul; The Elements of Drawing by Ruskin, John
A line engraving on steel, oblong in form; dimensions 13/16 by 1-7/16 inches, color dark blue.
From History of the Postage Stamps of the United States of America by Tiffany, John Kerr
As a work of art, we repeat, this is beyond question the finest instance of line-engraving yet executed on this continent.
From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 18, No. 109, November, 1866 by Various
Technically one of these arts, that of line-engraving on copper, sprang from the craft of the goldsmith and metal-chaser; while that of wood-engraving sprang from the craft of the printers of pattern-blocks and playing cards.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 8 "Dubner" to "Dyeing" by Various
To my eye it explains Mr. Lincoln far more than the most elaborate line-engraving which has been produced.
From McClure's Magazine December, 1895 by Tarbell, Ida M.
Dry-point, though generally regarded as a branch of etching, as it is so constantly used on the same plate as bitten work, is in reality more akin to line-engraving.
From Rembrandt, With a Complete List of His Etchings by Hind, Arthur Mayger
Engraving, known variously under the name of copper-plate printing, engraving in taille-douce, and line-engraving, produces the finest stamps figuring in our collections.
From Peeps at Postage Stamps by Johnson, Stanley Currie
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
