Monotype Print and Its Inked Plate Side by Side

A monotype prints only once. The image is painted or rolled in ink on a smooth plate, then pressed onto paper. Whatever ink stays behind can sometimes be pulled as a faint second impression, which printmakers call a ghost. Here the first print of reeds and still water lies next to its glass plate, the leftover image showing in reverse. A brayer and a stained rag wait nearby in this monotype jigsaw puzzle.