To print an intaglio plate, ink or inks are painted, wiped and dabbed into the recessed lines.
Through the corrosive action of acid in which case the process is known as etching.
The plate is then rubbed with tarlatan cloth to remove most of its waste and a final smooth wipe is often done with newspaper or old public phone book pages, leaving it in the incisions.
Dampened paper will usually be fed against the plate, covered by a blanket, so when pressed by rolling press it is squeezed into the plate's ink-filled grooves with uniform very high pressure.