If you find yourself a bit overwhelmed at all of the art terms used to describe these prints, perhaps the information provided here will answer some of your questions.

Artist Proof
Common practice is that 10 to 15 percent of an edition is reserved for the artist. These proofs are identical to impressions in the edition in most instances. Example; A/P "1/35" is the first print of an edition of 35 Artist Proof impressions.

Certificate of Authenticity
A document issued with limited edition prints, with the print published date, size of the image, original art media, number of the prints in the edition, a statement about the work from the artist and the fact that the plates have been or will be destroyed to close the edition. Certificate Examples

Giclee
A fine art print that has become more precise with the advent of the revolutionary printing process Giclee (zhee-clay) a French term meaning "spray of ink." In the Giclee process, a fine stream of ink (more than four millions droplets per second) is sprayed onto archival art paper or canvas. Each piece of paper or canvas is carefully hand mounted onto a drum which rotates during printing. Exact calculation of hue, value and density direct the ink from four nozzles. This produces a combination of 512 chromatic changes (with over three million colors possible) of highly saturated, non-toxic water-based ink. Since no screens are used in Giclee printing, the prints have a higher resolution than lithographs and the dynamic color range is greater than serigraphs.

Hors de Commerce
Hors de Commerce (Not for trade) traditionally were the graphics pulled with the regular edition but marked by the artist for business use only. These graphics were used for entering shows, exhibits, samples, etc. Today, however, since people began to acquire and collect them, these graphics now generally find their way to the market place through regular channels and are sold. Example H/C 1/10

Limited Edition Prints
A fixed number of identical prints of an image, signed by the artist, sequentially numbered, and showing both the print's number and the total edition size. Each print is referred to as a "limited edition print."

Lithograph
A print produced by a printing process in which the image to be printed is rendered on a flat surface, as on sheet zinc or aluminum, and treated to retain ink while the non-image areas are treated to repel ink.

Medium
Medium is the material or technical means of artistic expression. Examples include oils, watercolors, acrylics, ink, pencil and charcoal. Technical examples include lithography, serigraphy and giclee. Mixed media is the use of two or more materials and/or technical means.

Remarque
A current practice by some artist is the addition of a small personalized drawing near his penciled signature in the margin of the graphic. A print of this type is called a Remarques. Remarque Examples

Serigraph
A print made by the silk-screen process involving the use of stencils. Paint is applied to a fabric screen, penetrating areas not blocked by a stencil. Several stencils are used to produce a multicolored print. As a commercial medium, silk-screen printing has been used by such modern artists as Andy Warhol.

Signed and Numbered
Prints that are authenticated with the artists signature, the total number of impressions in the edition, and the order in which impression is signed. Numbering example; L/E "5/350, indicates the fifth print of a limited edition of 350 impressions.