# Plate commissions for Make Ready.

Six plates. Every prompt follows the house skill: the object described, not
the style label; every word of visible text named verbatim; one idea per
plate; the style dead earnest, the joke in the subject. Generate at high
resolution, portrait unless noted, then save as JPEG quality 88 into
`assets/woodcuts/` with the filename given. Proofread any lettering at full
size before accepting.

## 1. Frontispiece: Titivillus at the frame (titivillus-at-the-frame.jpg)

A wood engraving with dense black hatching, single ink, no gray washes. A
small horned demon in a monk's habit stands on a stool at a Victorian
composing frame, cheerfully setting metal type with three of its four
hands; the fourth hand holds a magnifying glass over a line it has just
set. Its expression is diligent and completely sincere. On the wall behind
it hangs a framed motto reading exactly: EVERY PAGE A WITNESS. Scattered
type sorts on the floor. Composition portrait, centered, suitable as a
frontispiece.

## 2. The shop (the-shop-at-morning.jpg)

A wood engraving, single ink, dense hatching. A small Victorian printing
office at morning: one human proprietor in shirtsleeves reads a long proof
sheet by a window, pencil behind ear, while around him four identical
mechanical figures made of press parts and brass work tirelessly: one sets
type, one inks a forme, one folds sheets, one carries a chase. The
proprietor is the only figure whose face is visible. No visible text
anywhere in the image.

## 3. The hell box (the-hell-box.jpg)

A wood engraving, single ink. Close view of a scarred wooden box under a
composing frame, overflowing with broken and worn metal type. A hand
lantern hangs above it, lighting the box theatrically, as if it were a
reliquary. One clearly bent letter A leans against the box's front, large
in the foreground. On the box's side, stenciled lettering reads exactly:
HELL BOX. Nothing else legible.

## 4. The press proof (the-press-proof.jpg)

A wood engraving, single ink, landscape composition. A stern figure in a
printer's apron holds a freshly pulled proof sheet up to a window's light
with both hands, examining it so closely their nose nearly touches the
paper. Behind them, an iron hand press stands mid-run and three mechanical
assistants wait in a patient row, each holding the next sheet. On the wall,
a small placard reads exactly: LOOK AT THE PAGES.

## 5. Imposition (the-imposed-forme.jpg)

A wood engraving, single ink, viewed from directly above: a printer's
imposing stone bearing a locked forme of sixteen pages of type arranged in
imposition order, some upside down as the craft requires. A pair of hands
adjusts a quoin at the forme's edge. One page position in the forme is
conspicuously empty, and a small demon peers out of the empty position as
if from a trapdoor. No legible text in the type.

## 6. The wayzgoose (the-wayzgoose.jpg)

A wood engraving, single ink, landscape. A long candlelit table in a
printing office cleared for a feast: the proprietor at the head raising a
tankard, and seated down both sides the mechanical compositors, napkins
tucked into their brass frames, a roast goose at the center. Under the
table, the small horned demon in a monk's habit gnaws a drumstick,
content. Bunting made of printed proof sheets hangs above. No legible
text.
