Encombe Woods No. II (copper plate)

This is one of Haden’s etching plates. The Walker Art Gallery does not have a printed version of this plate but the dried ink left in the lines indicates what the print would have looked like. Haden has signed and dated the plate in reverse so it would appear the correct way round when printed. The deep lines scored vertically and horizontally over the surface mean that this plate has been cancelled and no further impressions can be made. A plate is cancelled once the artist has printed their desired amount of prints. This was a way of controlling limited editions or states to avoid devaluing the prints.