Drypoint

Drypoint is an intaglio technique in which the artist scratches the image directly into the copper plate with a hard, sharp steel point.

Drypoint is similar to engraving in the sense that you make your marks directly into the copper plate, but doing drypoint the steel point does not cut a spool like the burin, but plows a scratch into the copper raising a ridge on both sides of the line. These ridges, called burrs, are crucial to the visual effect of a drypoint, as some of the ink applied to the printing plate will collect around the burrs when the surface is wiped clean, giving the lines a soft, wooly character.