Thing I learned in Bookbinding 1, Day 1:
There was a time when books would go from press to binder with the pages all folded up from larger sheets, still connected at the top, and then be bound that way. A gentleman might sit in his chair with a new book and a knife to slice the pages open with, knowing that he was the first to ever read it.
The bookbinders were largely illiterate until the last century or two. Anyone skilled enough to read would more likely work the press themselves, where they could proof the work.
That readers might buy the folded sheets from the printer unbound, and take them to their preferred binder, so that all the volumes in their library might match, having been done by the same craftsman.
That while Gutenberg may have invented the printing press in 1440, but it was little more than a century ago before the first machine to automate the stitching of the binding finally arrived. For more than 400 years after the press was mechanized, the binding remained manual labor.
....and aside from all those factoids, I must say that bookbinding has been a lovely vacation for the day. I'd signed up for it as anything but a vacation, since the skillset and tools for making game boards is the same as the ones used to craft hardback book covers. But each step of the process is one I can zen out to. Lining up the folios. Coating the thread wax. Punching the sections. Any task is relaxing when it's novel, yet repetitive, and not on a deadline. But this one taps into a childhood reverence for paper and craft. It was a happy day.
There was a time when books would go from press to binder with the pages all folded up from larger sheets, still connected at the top, and then be bound that way. A gentleman might sit in his chair with a new book and a knife to slice the pages open with, knowing that he was the first to ever read it.
The bookbinders were largely illiterate until the last century or two. Anyone skilled enough to read would more likely work the press themselves, where they could proof the work.
That readers might buy the folded sheets from the printer unbound, and take them to their preferred binder, so that all the volumes in their library might match, having been done by the same craftsman.
That while Gutenberg may have invented the printing press in 1440, but it was little more than a century ago before the first machine to automate the stitching of the binding finally arrived. For more than 400 years after the press was mechanized, the binding remained manual labor.
....and aside from all those factoids, I must say that bookbinding has been a lovely vacation for the day. I'd signed up for it as anything but a vacation, since the skillset and tools for making game boards is the same as the ones used to craft hardback book covers. But each step of the process is one I can zen out to. Lining up the folios. Coating the thread wax. Punching the sections. Any task is relaxing when it's novel, yet repetitive, and not on a deadline. But this one taps into a childhood reverence for paper and craft. It was a happy day.
VIEW 13 of 13 COMMENTS
annalee:
Slicing pages open for the first time seems so tantalising. Sorry, I seem to be turning this whole book thing into some kind of pornography. Wait, bibliophila!
ateh:
