Heliotypy

/ˌhɛliˈɒtɪpi/ noun

Definition

An early photographic printing method that uses the Sun's light to create images on specially prepared plates or paper.

Etymology

From Greek 'helios' (sun) + 'typos' (impression). This 19th-century technique emerged as photographers sought to make their sun-captured images permanent and reproducible.

Kelly Says

Heliotypy was literally 'sun printing'—photographers discovered they could use UV light to harden certain compounds, creating the ancestor of modern photo etching and offset printing.

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