Briar Press

Ramage Foolscap

The Ramage, a wooden hand press with iron platen, was built in 1820 by Scottish-born Adam Ramage (see Ramage Screw). The tabletop Ramage, at 38″ high, is the smallest of the three sizes of presses built by Ramage: a full-size common press; an intermediate free-standing press which Ramage called his “screw press” (see Ramage Screw); and the foolscap, so named for the size of sheet that it would print. Foolscap presses were sturdier than the larger screw presses and sold for around $65. After Ramage’s death in 1850, the Ramage foolscap presses were made for some years by Ramage’s successor, Frederick Bronstrup. The press shown is missing its tympan and frisket.

Contributors

Briar Press, Core contributor