1880's

Despite New Zealand's gradual decline into economic recession after the excitement and energy of the gold rush days, the 1880s marked the heyday of Victorian letterpress printing. New steam presses, new ornamented types and new printing processes gave printers increasingly sophisticated tools to get the word out whether in outrageous typography or glorious colour, in deluxe editions or in commercial quantities. The associated book trades including bookbinding, engraving, bookselling, publishing, paperselling and auctioneering all flourished. Wellington's dynamic duos, Lyon & Blair and Bock & Cousins, epitomise the range and quality of our print heritage in this uttermost part of the sea.