{"id":9866,"date":"2015-08-01T13:02:42","date_gmt":"2015-08-01T17:02:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/?p=9866"},"modified":"2025-09-15T15:47:31","modified_gmt":"2025-09-15T19:47:31","slug":"my-second-trip-to-rare-book-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2015\/08\/01\/my-second-trip-to-rare-book-school\/","title":{"rendered":"My Second Trip to Rare Book School"},"content":{"rendered":"

During the week of July 5th, I spent my days walking the grounds at the University of Virginia\u00a0and its surrounding neighborhoods in Charlottesville as I attended Rare Book School<\/a> for the second time. This year I was pleasantly surprised by the return of many of my classmates from last year as we had all enrolled to take Jan Storm van Leeuwen’s Advanced Seminar in the History of Bookbinding<\/a>. You can check out my post from last year here<\/a>\u00a0on the Introduction to the History of Bookbinding<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The class began with Jan laying out the terminology that would be used throughout the course. As many bookbinders and other professionals working the book may know, terms regarding binding anatomy, design and tools vary from country to country. There are even multiple terms describing the same thing. For ease, Jan chose to use typical English binding terms.<\/p>\n

With each lecture, Jan took us through a detailed history of binding styles and design styles beginning mainly with the Middle Ages and moving\u00a0through to the 19th century surveying several countries throughout Europe and briefly speaking about bindings in the United States. After several hours of lecturing and many pages of handwritten notes, we were invited to view items from Special Collections and tasked with creating detailed descriptions before comparing our own to Jan’s.<\/p>\n

The description process begins with an overview of the binding before narrowing the focus to each little detail. Using Jan’s extensive outline as a guide, I would note the decoration that adorned not only the covers and spine but also along the board edge, turn-in, endcap and raised bands. Attention is also given to the endbands, text block edges and any text that appears on the binding. Once the exterior of the binding is reviewed, I would then survey the endpapers and the book for any annotations and marks of ownership.\u00a0The reason for such a comprehensive overview is to extract\u00a0clues in order to pinpoint the binding’s country of origin and time period.<\/p>\n

\"RBSDescription-ErinFletcher\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The first binding I had the pleasure of describing was a beautifully tooled leather bound copy of\u00a0La siege de Mets\u00a0<\/em>by Bertrand de Salignac Fenelon. From my findings I deduced that this binding may have produced sometime during the late Middle Ages in France. The Renaissance saw a Persian influence in binding with much more gold tooling. The most rewarding part of describing this binding was my discovery of very faint lettering on the spine. The lettering was blind and placed over the sem\u00e9 patterning (small repeating background pattern). This faint lettering confused me at first, but then I came to realize that the lettering was a result of the title having been tooled onto a label much later in the life of the binding. The label has since been removed, but proof of its prior existence still remains.<\/p>\n

Moving into the 18th century, I grabbed a fairly indelicate\u00a0Cottage-roof style binding. That is to say, the design is quite striking, but not the\u00a0work\u00a0of a talented finisher. As a design style only found in England during the late 17th to the early 18th century it wasn’t too difficult to determine its origins. Inside is a calligraphic inscription: “Mary Sharland, Her Book, October 21st, 1766” <\/em>adorned with flourishes.\u00a0In addition to the inscription were some\u00a0unusual punched shapes (two dotted outlines of a circle seen faintly on either side of the date in the image below).<\/p>\n

\"RBSDescription2-ErinFletcher\"<\/a><\/p>\n

One of the last bindings I had the opportunity to look at was an unusual bespoke binding from the 19th century which incorporates\u00a0binding and design styles from\u00a0the Middle Ages Germany to 18th century England.\u00a0Lyra Germanica<\/em> was published in 1859 and translated from German into English.<\/p>\n

\"RBSDescription4-ErinFletcher\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The spine and joint have been tooled in a way that accentuate the raised cords as was often seen on bindings in the Middle Ages. The boards are heavily sculpted, another unusual feature for the 19th century but typical for bindings from the Middle Ages. The covers were panel stamped with a very modern geometric design. The wide frame with corner compartments is very typical in English bindings beginning in the 19th century.<\/p>\n

Before the course came to an end, we looked at a selection\u00a0of almanacs from RBS’s collection as well as miniature almanacs from the collection of book collector Pat Pitsner (one of my classmates). Within Pat’s collection, we saw a few embroidered almanacs, one shaped like a ladybug, a silk scroll housed in an enamel case and a late-fanfare style binding with matching leather slipcase. It was a wonderful surprise and with each binding, oohs and aahs rose from the class.<\/p>\n

\"RBSDescription5-ErinFletcher\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Finally, we took a look at a large sample of publisher’s binding after receiving a brief lecture from Jan. There were also a few bespoke bindings sprinkled about the table, like the binding on the right in the image below. Gifted to his newly betrothed wife, this binding is tooled over paper onlays in silver leaf that may have been mixed with other metals.<\/p>\n

\"RBSDescription6-ErinFletcher\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I once again had a wonderful time at Rare Book School where I gained a deeper understanding of binding styles from around Europe during the late Middle Ages to the 19th century. It was such a treat to sit in on Jan’s class and to be exposed to his vast knowledge on bookbinding history. If you’ve been debating about whether or not to make the trip to Rare Book School, I would highly recommend it. You are guarantee to walk away with an abundance of knowledge on the topic that interests you. Plus you’ll be surrounded by charming book loving folks working in all sorts of fields and backgrounds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

During the week of July 5th, I spent my days walking the grounds at the University of Virginia\u00a0and its surrounding neighborhoods in Charlottesville as I attended Rare Book School for the second time. This year I was pleasantly surprised by the return of many of my classmates from last year as we had all enrolled […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[1525,1524],"class_list":["post-9866","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-jan-storm-van-leeuwen","tag-rare-book-school"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2Btis-2z8","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":8228,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2014\/07\/04\/rare-book-school-here-i-come\/","url_meta":{"origin":9866,"position":0},"title":"Rare Book School – Here I Come","author":"Erin Fletcher","date":"July 4, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"After reading through 1,275 pages of content detailing the history of bookbinding, I'm ready for my week-long course at the Rare Book School. For the following week, I'll be spending my days at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville filling my brain with even more detailed information on the history\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "bookbinding"","block_context":{"text":"bookbinding","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/bookbinding\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/RBS-ErinFletcher.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/RBS-ErinFletcher.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/RBS-ErinFletcher.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/RBS-ErinFletcher.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8261,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2014\/07\/24\/my-time-at-rare-book-school\/","url_meta":{"origin":9866,"position":1},"title":"My Time at Rare Book School","author":"Erin Fletcher","date":"July 24, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Rare Book School uses the term rare not to refer to objects that are expensive and uncommon, but in regards to the\u00a0object's uniqueness and unusual excellence in artistic quality and craftsmanship. I would describe my experience at RBS as the latter sense of the word. The carefully crafted\u00a0instruction that was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "my hand"","block_context":{"text":"my hand","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/my-hand\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/RareBookSchool7-ErinFletcher.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/RareBookSchool7-ErinFletcher.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/RareBookSchool7-ErinFletcher.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/RareBookSchool7-ErinFletcher.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2764,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2012\/12\/01\/december-bookbinder-of-the-month-jan-sobota\/","url_meta":{"origin":9866,"position":2},"title":"December \/\/ Bookbinder of the Month: Jan Sobota","author":"Erin Fletcher","date":"December 1, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Jan Sobota grew up engulfed by books, about 20,000 to be exact. His father was an avid collector of literature, most specifically children's literature, filling their small house to the brim with books. Every available square inch of wall space was covered with bookcases leaving only the windows and doors\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "binder of the month"","block_context":{"text":"binder of the month","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/binder-of-the-month\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/perrault4_jansobota.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/perrault4_jansobota.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/perrault4_jansobota.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/perrault4_jansobota.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3061,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2012\/12\/16\/bookbinder-of-the-month-jan-sobota-3\/","url_meta":{"origin":9866,"position":3},"title":"Bookbinder of the Month: Jan Sobota","author":"Erin Fletcher","date":"December 16, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"This book object and stand were crafted by Jan Sobota in 1987, the book is Rimska Lyrika (Lyrics of the Roman Empire). The book is covered in natural calfskin with blind tooling, decorative edges and headbands. The stand is made of binders board and balsa wood covered with natural goatskin\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "binder of the month"","block_context":{"text":"binder of the month","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/binder-of-the-month\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"rimskalyrika_jansobota","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/rimskalyrika_jansobota-964x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/rimskalyrika_jansobota-964x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/rimskalyrika_jansobota-964x1024.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3224,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2012\/12\/23\/bookbinder-of-the-month-jan-sobota-4\/","url_meta":{"origin":9866,"position":4},"title":"Bookbinder of the Month: Jan Sobota","author":"Erin Fletcher","date":"December 23, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"In the spirit of Christmas, I offer this binding by Jan Sobota that appears like box within a box. In 1986, Sobota completed this layered book object of Frantisek Rachlik's\u00a0Komedie\u00a0plna lasky (Comedy Full of Love), a story about the life of Jindrich Mosna, a famous Czech actor during the nineteenth\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "binder of the month"","block_context":{"text":"binder of the month","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/binder-of-the-month\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/rachlik3_sobota.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/rachlik3_sobota.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/rachlik3_sobota.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/rachlik3_sobota.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2913,"url":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/2012\/12\/02\/bookbinder-of-the-month-jan-sobota\/","url_meta":{"origin":9866,"position":5},"title":"Bookbinder of the Month: Jan Sobota","author":"Erin Fletcher","date":"December 2, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Jan Sobota produced several miniature bindings, which were included in various exhibitions. This binding of Edgar Allen Poe's\u00a0The Black Cat was published in a small edition of 20 by Jan and Jarmilla in 2009. This book-object was designed as a 'Jack-in-the-Box', the book is permanently attached to a spring that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "binder of the month"","block_context":{"text":"binder of the month","link":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/category\/binder-of-the-month\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/edgarallenpoe2_jansobota.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9866","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9866"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9866\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9887,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9866\/revisions\/9887"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9866"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9866"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.herringbonebindery.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9866"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}