Historical Book Structures Practicum
Offered by Jeff Peachey, bookbinder, book conservator, and tool maker, this hands-on studio practicum focused on understanding the history and structure of historic bookbinding's by making models of them, complemented by required readings and by attending virtual talks by speakers from across the globe. This year, in response to the ongoing pandemic, Jeff equipped himself with three cameras, and from his studio in New York, streamed the class weekly via zoom while the LACE majors and minors worked at their respective institutions.
This workshop fundamentally allowed us to understand manufacturing processes and how these materials interact with each other, promoting the book's longevity or attempting against it.
Photo Credit: Jim Schneck | Models crafted during the HBSP held virtually, over Zoom, during the Summer of 2021
Nineteenth-Century Publisher’s Binding:
An inexpensive retail style of binding that emerged in England in the mid-eighteenth century. They are most often bound on paper and described as temporary bindings because they were meant to be rebound, in a fine binding materials such as leather, by the purchaser. In reality, these modest books were also intended to help meet the growing demand for books at an affordable cost for the common people. It consists of a sewn textblock with a smooth spine because it was sewn on recessed cords. The textblock does not have endbands. Additionally, the covers were made of very thin pasteboard covered in olive, brown or blue paper with the spine covered in tan paper.
Mid-Nineteenth-Century English Half Leather Binding:
The Mid-19th-Century English half-leather binding is an outburst of color. It’s sewn on recessed cords and the spine has straps of leather or cord stuck to it, which once covered with leather, imitate traditional raised cords found on medieval codices. These books also have endbands. As seen in my model, they also have marbled papers decorating its sides and pastedowns.
Eighteenth-Century French Binding:
This style of binding was extremely common in France during the 18th century, and they are easily recognized today by their marbled leather, blue and white endbands, French curled marbled endpapers and vermilion-sprinkled edges.
Sixteenth-Century Gothic German Binding:
These codices are bound in smooth alum tawed skin over oak wooden boards. Traditionally, the alum tawed skin was heavily hand tooled. The oak wooden boards are shaped with files and rasps in different configurations, the bevel edge profile configuration is the one we applied to our model. The textblock is sewn on raised double cord sewing supports which elegantly transfer through the leather spine as we can see here. Additionally, these books have functional brass clasps.
