However, in early years of the 19th century the process of colour printing had been revived by George Savage, a Yorkshireman in London.

[2] Baxter's experiments first bore commercial fruit in 1834, with two small vignettes published in Mudie's "British Birds".

[5] In 1837, he published 'Pictorial Album; or, Cabinet of Paintings' containing designs, executed in oil colours from original pictures, with illustrations in verse and prose.

[7] Despite his technical excellence and the general popularity of his prints, Baxter's business was never profitable – his process was laborious and it seems likely that his perfectionism prevented him from completing many of his commissioned works on time.

Eventually, he sold his plates and blocks to the printer Vincent Brooks, who later republished some of Baxter's images.

Leighton could not use a metal intaglio plate as a base without infringing upon Baxter's patent, although "… the fact that he had to do without it probably helped to ensure his commercial success".

[14] Kronheim and Dickes both used Baxter's process from 1849 onwards, and both were large suppliers of colour plates to book publishers, "competing on price rather than quality".

[15] Baxter's patent process was not necessarily strictly followed by his licensees – for example, both Kronheim and Dickes were lithographic printers as well as wood engravers, and most likely mixed all of their printing methods together.

Baxter achieved his precise registration by fixing the print over a number of spikes, over which the blocks would also fit.

It is also believed Baxter occasionally applied glaze via an additional printing step all over the image, composed of his usual varnish with a 'hard drier' added to make it insoluble in water.