Tympan 2381045 223707557 2008-07-05T10:58:12Z Tenpin369 7425104 {{unreferenced|date=March 2007}}<!--What about a picture?--> In hand-operated [[letterpress]] printing, the '''tympan''' is the taut cloth or paper mounted in a frame which is placed over the sheet of paper immediately prior to lowering the [[platen]] to make the impression. {{printmaking-stub}} [[Category: Printmaking]] [[cy:Tympan]] [[ru:Декель]] Tympan refers to a sheet of oiled manilla paper which was securely fastened to the face of the platen of a letterpress printing machine. Underneath the tympan would be a packing which would vary in grade of firmness relevant to the type or image to be printed. Pre-cut tympan papers were relatively expensive and, as such, were reused depending on their condition and the nature of the work. The under packing consisted of loose fibre paper/board (sometimes known as saffron) which absorbed the inpact of the letterpress principle thus avoiding damage to the hand-set or pre-cast typography or engravings.