PURPOSE: To perform the proofreading of a printed figure accurately and automatically, by such simple operation that the figure of the proof of printed matter printing and displaying continuous figures are read by an optical head and judged by a pattern recognition apparatus to perform the proofreading of the figure.

CONSTITUTION: White proofreading papers are inserted into printed matter printing and displaying continuous figures at definite intervals and the same figure as printed matter coming to a product is printed thereto to obtain a proof. After punched holes 2 for registering are formed to the proof 1 by a punching table 14, the punched proof is mounted to a drum 5 while each figure of the proof 1 on the drum 5 is read by an optical head 4 successively and automatically while the drum 5 is rotated to be judged by a pattern recognition part 7. It is successively collated by a operation control part 9 whether said number is same to the layout number read by a memory part 8 or not and, when the read number is different from the layout number or there is the omission in the figure, the generating place of "error" and the proofreading result of the number are printed by a typewriter 12.