Vellum paper

Description

A thick, ivory-colored paper originally treated and embossed to simulate the appearance and texture of animal vellum. First made in the late 19th century, vegetable vellum is a tough, translucent paper made from chemical wood pulp and/or cotton fibers. The fiber sheet is coated or impregnated to produce a semitransparent paper with low gloss. Vellum paper may have melamine resin added to increase transparency. Vegetable vellum is thicker than vegetable parchment. It is used for diplomas and engraving.

Synonyms and Related Terms

Japanese vellum; imitation vellum; vegetable vellum; papier vélin (Fr.)

Authority

• Ralph Mayer, A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques, Harper and Row Publishers, New York, 1969 (also 1945 printing)

• Matt Roberts, Don Etherington, Bookbinding and the Conservation of Books: a Dictionary of Descriptive Terminology, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington DC, 1982

• The Dictionary of Paper, American Paper Institute, New York, Fourth Edition, 1980

• Art and Architecture Thesaurus Online, http://www.getty.edu/research/tools/vocabulary/aat/, J. Paul Getty Trust, Los Angeles, 2000