printing plate

Device that carries the image to be printed and is applied directly to paper or to an intermediate image carrier, such as a print blanket, in order to transfer the image to paper. The image on the plate may be raised above the surface (relief), may be carved (etched-see etch) into the surface, or may be flush with the surface and differentiated chemically from the nonimage areas of the plate. Most printing plates are metallic. See also bimetal plate; desensitizer; gravure; lithography.