Watermarks are designs imprinted into paper with wires in the mould. Intentional watermarks have been imprinted into paper dating as early back as the Byzantine era in Greek civilization. The markings seen largely consist of simple designs focused around nature such as trees and flowers.

The European [guild]s and tradesmen around the year 1282 were the first group to mass-produce paper with watermarks as an indication of the paper’s quality and craftsmanship. In 1848, WH Smith created the watermark technology that enabled a marking to be printed in both light and dark shades, allowing the creation of complex and intricate pictures, such as portraits.

Watermarks come in several degrees of complexity from simple letters or designs to elaborate portraits of [monarch]s and noblemen. They have even been created in three dimensions on paper using leaves and solid moldings. In modern times, watermarks are used both as a decoration on stationary, as well as a security system to prove the authenticity of documents such as checks and paper money.

Watermark (thing)