On the left hand lower corner of the impression is where you should place your edition number. These are two numbers that are divided by a slash and look like a fraction. The number below the slash is the size of the edition or how many prints are in the series and the upper number is the number assigned. So for example, if you have 25 identical prints and ready for numbering, you would number them 1/25 and the next 2/25 and so on.
Outside of numbering an edition, there are different marks that printmakers use to distinguish certain prints as being unique from the numbered edition:
A/P., P.A.,or E.A. (Artist Proof, Prueba de Artista or Epreuve d’artist) - If the artist is creating an edition for a dealer, the artist is able to keep a few prints for personal use from the edition. These are part of the edition and are kept to the same standard but are labeled A/P for Artist Proof, or more traditionally E.A. which is the French equivalent. The standard is to only have 10% of your edition be made up of these kinds of prints.
P/P, P.I. or E.I. (Printer’s Proof, Prueba de Impresor or Epreuve d’imprimeur) -These are proofs that the printmaker keeps, usually only one.
B.A.T. (Bon à Tirer) or R.T.P (Ready To Print) -A print signed with this mark (French for “good to pull”) means that this is the first print in the edition that meets the standards of the artist or printmaker and is used to measure the quality of the rest. These prints usually are the property of the studio that produced them.
T/P (Trial Proof) -These prints are made during the process of adjusting and developing the image. Even though technically they are unfinished prints, in the art market they are worth much more than the regularly editioned work because they reveal the process of the artist in creating the finished work.
S/P (State Proof) -This mark designates the print as a working proof and as being further worked on after the edition was created. Sometimes etchings will be assigned this mark as the printmaker experiments with acid exposure to the plate creating darker lines or variations in the design.
H.C. (Hors Commerce)- French for “For Commercial Use”, these prints are sometimes unsigned by the artist and used to promote the edition and are supposedly not to be sold.
C/P (Cancellation Print) -After the edition has been printed, some artists and printmakers alter the original plate, block or stone so that it cannot be reprinted again. Usually a line is drawn on the matrix across and then a print made as proof that the original has been changed and no more prints from it can be made.
M.P or M.T. (Monoprint or Monotype) - This is reserved for unique prints most commonly using serigraphic process or flat plates of non-porous material where the artist and/or printmaker draw a design and only one print can be pulled from it.
U/P (Unique Print), U/S (Unique State), V/E (Variable Edition) -Prints labeled with these marks have some kind of unique feature that can’t be reproduced again. These kind of prints as well as, monoprints and monotypes may be labeled as 1/1 (edition of 1).
Imp. - Abbreviation for the Latin word “impressit”, this mark may be found after the signature if the artist printed their own work.
H.M.P, H.P.M or H.M.M. (Hand Modified Print, Hand Painted Print or Hand Modified Multiple) -Sometimes artists add features to a print by hand after the edition is created. These are most commonly found in serigraph prints.
E.V. (Edition Varied) -Editions made on different paper or with printed with a different color ink are sometimes labeled with this mark. Some artists and printmakers choose to number these prints with Roman numerals instead of Arabic numerals Eg. I/X - X/X.
This by all means is not the definitive guide. There are other marks and labels that are used in countries with different standards. Feel free to share any related to the prints being discussed that you don't see on the list by commenting below.
