To judge a book by its cover

RjRemon

If the bindings illustrate the holiness of their contents, they all have the role of protecting the scriptures. A wooden plate is pressed between two pieces of fabric or leather, attached to the codex (the set of sheets folded into sheets), itself bound by hand. Actually, we're not talking about the cover yet, but the binding. For the sake of protection, books were often closed with metal or leather clasps until the end of the 15th century. They are designed to be laid flat and well protected. Then the clasps go out of fashion and are gradually replaced by strings and finally nothing more - except for some precious books.

In the 16th century, it is the Genesis of the modern book as we know it: without clasp, with a hard cover, smaller format, easier to carry. From colophon to title page The title appears on the edge around the 16th century only. Information about the author, the translator if necessary, the name of the printer or copyist, the date or place are written at the end of the book in what is called a colophon (from Greek, meaning completion) like this one from 1607. With the increase in the number background remove service of printed books, the colophon is less convenient to consult, and gradually migrates to the front of the book. As early as 1520, what we call the title page appeared, with the title, the author and the bookstore (which often rhymed with publisher) hierarchized on the first page.

My binder is rich (16th - 19th centuries) At the time and until the 19th century, a book was bought uncovered with only a temporary seam, and wrapped in paper. The buyer has it assembled and bound by a specialist, where he can choose his "style": all leather, paper, gold gilt edge, touch of red and embossed... according to his budget. The book still remains a very beautiful object which does not throne on all the shelves, and on which the purchaser can afford some fantasies. Below is an example of leather binding from the late 16th century. There are lots of pictures of old books to discover on the Michigan State University Library site, if you want to see even more leather. The pictures of old books.