#clothbindings

[librarycompany]

Ever wonder why you see a ton of gold-stamped cloth bindings from the 19th century, but hardly any silver? Gilt-stamping was a popular technique for decorating leather bindings, and made an easy transition to decorating cloth bindings when bookcloth first hit the American publishers’ binding scene in the 1830s. 

Since aluminum-stamping was not available until the late 1870s, and was most popular through the 1880s, we see fewer examples in collections today. 

Rollo in Holland. Abbott, Jacob. New York : Hurst & Co. [ca. 1880?] 10 cm x 15 cm x 2.5 cm. 

[librarycompany]

Our feed has been looking a little gray-scale this week, so we decided to introduce a little color. But then we couldn't decide which color, so we just did all of them.  

G. W. Septimus Piesse. Chymical natural and physical magic intended for the instruction and amusement of juveniles during the holiday vacation. London: Longman, Brown, Green, Longmans, & Roberts, 1859.

[librarycompany]

We don’t see too many white cloth bound books, and those we do see are usually quite discolored. At least the grayed cloth on our copy of Pictorial Life of Benjamin Franklin (Philadelphia, 1846) adds to the moodiness of those gilt-stamped clouds!

#PublishersBindingThursday

Pictorial life of Benjamin Franklin. Philadelphia : Lindsay & Blakiston. 1846.      

[librarycompany]

It’s time for a #Feathursday edition of #PublishersBindingThursday! Published in 1850, our copy of The Book of Birds features a stunning color-blocked white cloth binding.

Browse the Library Company’s database of 19th-Century Cloth Bindings to see more!

The Book of birds. Philadelphia : George S. Appleton. 1850.       

[librarycompany]

The gilt decoration on our copy of Robert Buist’s The Family Kitchen Gardener (New York, 1847) is giving us some major garden inspiration! 

#PublishersBindingThursday

Robert Buist. The family kitchen gardener, containing plain and accurate descriptions of all the different species and varieties of culinary vegetables. New York : J. C. Riker. 1847.    

[librarycompany]

Our copy of Clarence Cook’s The House Beautiful (New York, 1878) includes this gold-stamped illustration of a young woman reading on a chaise longue by a fireplace... #goals 

#MacroMonday

Cook, Clarence. The house beautiful : essays on beds and tables, stools and candlesticks. New York : Scribner, Armstrong and Co. 1878.

[librarycompany]

We were challenged by the American Antiquarian Society to post seven days of #bookcovers without explanation or review. 

Day 3:

Beecher, Lyman. Views in theology. Cincinnati : Truman and Smith. 1836.

[curiouscatalog]

George du Maurier’s novel, with a Margaret Armstrong-designed cloth binding and interesting bleed-through of manuscript notes onto frontispiece (2 images)

Du Maurier, George, 1834-1896. Trilby, a novel. New York : Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1894

Special Collections: PZ3.D887 T8