A type of printing plate used in offset lithography, in contrast to an additive plate, in which light shined through a photographic negative hardens image areas on the plate, the non-image areas remaining soluble. The coating in the non-image areas then needs to be removed—or subtracted—from the surface of the plate following exposure. A subtractive plate does not need the addition of an image-reinforcing material. See also Additive Plate. See Plate: Offset Lithography.
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