Cope, Sherwin & Company designed and built the Imperial Press in Shoreditch, London, for only a brief period. The Imperial was part of a second generation of iron hand presses that followed the Stanhope and bears similarities to the Albion, Columbian, and Washington presses.

There is even speculation that the Cope company name was related to R.W. Cope, inventor of the Albion press. Although the Imperial shares similarities with the Albion, the Imperial is the more powerful press due to its leverage system, which is influenced by the Stanhope. A leaf spring raises the platen of the Imperial, while the Albion employs a coil spring located in its cap.

This 22 X 33” Imperial was purchased by one family in 1828, when it was brand new, and was passed down from father to son for many years. The press was still printing posters in the basement of a tobacconist’s shop in Long Sutton, England, until 1970, when it was acquired by Ernest A. Lindner. You can view this press in the Museum gallery.