The counterweight Albion was originally built in London around 1827 by Richard Whittaker Cope, inventor of the Albion press. The addition of a counterweight, typically in the shape of an urn or the royal arms, was intended to increase the strength of an impression, thus creating a better print. Very few of the counterweight Albion presses were ever built, however; shortly after Cope’s death in 1828, his successors replaced the weight with a spring in a cap, as on the first Albion presses. Counterweight Albions were also made by handpress manufacturers in Brussels, Belgium, as is the case with the press shown, built by J.P. Lejeune around 1840. Its weight is in the form of the Belgian Lion.

Contributors

Briar Press, Core contributor