Biernagels (german: Biernagel, pl. Biernägel for "beer nails") are

conical A cone is a three-dimensional geometric shape that tapers smoothly from a flat base (frequently, though not necessarily, circular) to a point called the apex or vertex. A cone is formed by a set of line segments, half-lines, or lines conn ...

, hemispherical or pyramid shaped fittings on the outer covers of books used in

tableround A tableround is a traditional academic feast known at universities in most Middle and Eastern European countries. At a tableround, tables usually are placed in the form of a U or a W, the participants drink beer and sing commercium songs. A more ...

and

commercium A commercium is a traditional academic feast known at universities in most Central and Northern European countries. In German it is called a or . Today it is still organised by student fraternities in Germanic and Baltic countries, as well as Po ...

type academic feasts. Primarily biernagels are used on German song books called "Kommersbuch", which are similar to the

studentencodex The Studentencodex is the most widely used commercium book in the Flemish Region, Flemish part of Belgium. Most students use the editions published by the Katholiek Vlaams Hoogstudentenverbond (KVHV), which is composed of three parts: the ''corpsb ...

song books used in Belgium. Also

guestbook A guestbook (also guest book, visitor log, visitors' book, visitors' album) is a paper or electronic means for a visitor to acknowledge a visit to a site, physical or web-based, and leave details such as their name, postal or electronic addres ...

s are sometimes fitted with biernagels. Song books are usually kept on the table during tableround events, thus being exposed to danger of being damaged by coming into contact with spilled

beer Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from ce ...

. With biernagels on it, the book cover is raised half a centimeter from the surface of the table, and thus remains mostly dry. Also other books, that are likely to lie on dirty or wet surfaces, such as

cookbook A cookbook or cookery book is a kitchen reference containing recipes. Cookbooks may be general, or may specialize in a particular cuisine or category of food. Recipes in cookbooks are organized in various ways: by course (appetizer, first cour ...

s, are sometimes seen with biernagels fitted on them.Verband deutscher Antiquare e.V.: ''Glossar: Fachbegriffe im Antiquariat''
(in German)

References

Academic meals Bookbinding

See also

References