Printer’s Devil Bookmark

The “printer’s devil” was the apprentice in a print shop: the one who inked forms, fetched and melted lead, swept up, and—by tradition—got blamed for whatever went wrong. This bookmark tips its hat to the trade’s hardest-working beginners.

The printer’s devil is part of printing’s strong connections with playful uses of religious terms. The printing shop was called the chapel, and the oldest worker was the father of the chapel. Breaches of working rules (such as swearing and fighting) led to punishments called solaces, which were paid into a common kitty for celebrations. Type meant to be melted down for new casting went into the hellbox.

This bookmark is one of a set (the other is Tutivillus, the typo demon). It was printed by letterpress in two colors—red and black—through the good offices of Czar Press in Los Angeles using photopolymer relief plates.