Tympan

On a hand press, the rectangular frame, hinged on the bed of the press, which when closed holds the paper in place and slides under the platen.

The tympan assembly is composed of two steel frames, one fitting inside the other, with a covering of parchment or bookbinders cloth stretched across them. The smaller one, called the inner tympan, is a simple rectangle; it is laid inside the outer tympan and kept there by swiveling hooks on top of the outer tympan.

Tympan paper, also called tympan, is the stiff paper that is used for packing on the platen of a platen press. The tympan paper, covering the platen, is pierced with gauge pins, which are used to hold in place a single sheet of paper as the impression is made.