Block printing
Printing a pattern on cloth or paper by hand with carved wooden blocks.
Also: hand block print, woodblock printing
A block printer presses a carved wooden block onto a dye pad and then onto cloth stretched over a padded table, striking it with the heel of the hand. A separate block is needed for each colour, and each must be placed exactly by eye. In India, towns such as Sanganer and Bagru in Rajasthan and the villages of Kutch are known for it. Blocks may print dye directly, or print a mordant or a resist paste that controls where the dye will take. Small irregularities show the cloth was printed by hand.