decalcomania

noun

de·​cal·​co·​ma·​nia di-ˌkal-kə-ˈmā-nē-ə 

1

: the art or process of transferring pictures and designs from specially prepared paper (as to glass)

2

: decal

Examples of decalcomania in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

To bring her surrealist works to life, British artist Ithell Colquhoun employed techniques ranging from fumage to decalcomania, entopic graphomania and parsemage. —Meilan Solly, Smithsonian, 17 July 2019

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French décalcomanie, from décalquer "to trace, transfer by tracing" (from dé- de- + calquer "to trace, copy") + -o- -o- + -manie -mania, after potichomanie "the art of imitating painted porcelain ware," earlier presumably "craze for vases imitating Chinese porcelain," compound with potiche "rounded or polygonal vase with a separate cover, originally one made in China" — more at calque

First Known Use

1864, in the meaning defined at sense 1