Old handmade paper still shows the lines of its mould — ChillScroll

A damp cream paper sheet on a wooden mould with faint fine and wide wire lines

Old handmade paper still shows the lines of its mould

A traditional papermaking mould had many fine wires supported by wider chain wires. As wet pulp settled and dried, those wires left a faint repeating pattern in the sheet.

Light can reveal the papermaker's grid long after the sheet has dried.

Source · Library of Congress ↗