The text to be printed was first printed onto the frisket, the paper-covered upper frame; holes were then cut into the frisket covering, a process just begun in this picture, and the frame folded down over the tympan. Both were then folded down over the press bed, which held the type forme. The second impression of the forme was made onto the "tympan sheet", which was used for positioning the paper for the whole press run, and for make-ready, where weak parts could be padded out with thin paper and heavy parts of the impression weakened by cutting away the tympan sheet. Hand-made paper was always printed while damp, and both frames were necessary in the hand press. The tympan was needed for positioning and padding between the platen and the type, being usually padded with fine blanket material, while the frisket acted as a paper gripper and a mask to prevent the whole sheet of paper from sagging down onto the forme.
