Limp binding is a

bookbinding Bookbinding is the process of physically assembling a book of codex format from an ordered stack of ''signatures'', sheets of paper folded together into sections that are bound, along one edge, with a thick needle and strong thread. Cheaper, b ...

method in which the book has flexible cloth,

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hogs, ...

vellum Vellum is prepared animal skin or membrane, typically used as writing material. Parchment is another term for this material, from which vellum is sometimes distinguished, when it is made from calfskin, as opposed to that made from other anima ...

, or (rarely) paper sides. When the sides of the book are made of

, the bookbinding method is also known as limp vellum. The cover is made with a single piece of vellum or alternative material, folded around the textblock, the front and back covers being folded double. The quires are sewn onto sewing supports such as cords or alum-tawed thongs and the tips of the sewing supports would be laced into the cover. The thongs could also be used at the fore edge of the covers to create a closure or tie. In limp binding the covering material is not stiffened by thick boards, although paste-downs, if used, provide some stiffness; some limp bindings are only adhered to the back of the book. Some limp vellum bindings had yapp edges that flop over to protect the textblock.

Usage

Limp vellum bindings for

commonplace book Commonplace books (or commonplaces) are a way to compile knowledge, usually by writing information into books. They have been kept from antiquity, and were kept particularly during the Renaissance and in the nineteenth century. Such books are simi ...

s were being produced at least as early as the 14th century and probably earlier, but it was not usually common until the 16th and 17th centuries. Its usage subsequently declined until "revived by the

private presses Private press publishing, with respect to books, is an endeavor performed by craft-based expert or aspiring artisans, either amateur or professional, who, among other things, print and build books, typically by hand, with emphasis on Book design, ...

near the end of the 19th century." From about 1775 to 1825, limp leather was commonly used for

pocket books Pocket Books is a division of Simon & Schuster that primarily publishes paperback books. History Pocket Books produced the first mass-market, pocket-sized paperback books in the United States in early 1939 and revolutionized the publishing in ...

, but by the 1880s limp bindings came to be largely restricted to devotional books, diaries, and sentimental verse, sometimes with yapp edges. Yapp edges are bent edges on a limp binding projecting beyond the textblock to reduce damage. They are often found in editions of the Bible.

References

Bibliography

External links

* an online exhibit of the form with an essay on its history * from the

University of Texas at Austin School of Information The University of Texas School of Information is a graduate school and undergraduate school at the University of Texas at Austin, offering master's and doctoral degrees in information studies, as well as certificates of advanced study and an unde ...

* {{cite journal , last=Barrios , first=Pamela , year=2006 , title=Notes on the Limp Vellum Binding , journal=The Bonefolder , volume=2 , issue=2 , issn =1555-6565 , url=http://www.philobiblon.com/bonefolder/vol2no2contents.htm , format =pdf Bookbinding Book design Hides (skin)