An Essay in the History of Gold-Tooled
Bindings by Herbert P. Horne
London 1894
edge, if placed one upon another, on a shelf, with their backs exposed, would have a
tendency to fall forward; whence the habit of reversely placing them, so that they inclined
towards the wall, or back of the case. The fashion of lettering the backs of books appears
to have been first introduced by Italian binders, during the second quarter of the
sixteenth century; at which time the use of strings for smaller volumes began to be
discontinued: but this fashion of lettering did not become universal, for nearly a century.
In England, especially, the art of forwarding was slowly perfected: and we find, as late as
the year 1612, on the tomb of Sir Thomas Bodley, in the chapel of Merton College, at
Oxford, a representation of books furnished with clasps, and placed upright upon shelves,
with the fore edge exposed.
But to return to my subject of painted book edges: a late, but very remarkable, example of
a painted edge may be seen in the South Kensington Museum, on a copy of the New
Testament, with the Psalms, in Dutch, 1594 [85-'66.]. The book possesses an embroidered
binding; and the edge, which is of exquisite workmanship, is painted with a multitude of
figures, probably the work of a Dutch artist. In England, where the art has not been
neglected, Edwards, a binder of Halifax, in the early part of this century gained a certain
repute for his book edge which he decorated with landscape, po. jing much of the charm,
which the English painters in water-colors, of that time, gave to their work.
Of the various methods of marbling, and sprinkling the edges of a book, I must refrain
from speaking, in this place. But I may add that some charming effects of colour were
obtained in France at the end of the seventeenth, and the beginning of the eighteenth
century, by a method, which is known as marbling under the gold. The edges of the book
are fanned out, right and left, and marbled; and the book is then closed, and gilded in the
ordinary way; so that the marbling only appears beneath the gold, when the book is
opened. Painted edges have, also, been executed under gold, in the same manner.
HEAD-BANDING .-We are now come to the consideration of the head-bands, which
appear at the head and tail of a book, and over which the covering of the back is trimmed
and finished. This embellishment, for it is, now, little more, was originally one of the bands
upon which the book was sewn, taking the place, and fulfilling the functions of the kettle
stitch. The use of this method, which appears to have belonged entirely to the age of
manuscripts, gave strength to a binding; but it was discarded, because it prevented the
edges of the book from being afterwards cut.