Lucas Robert F.- The Essentials of Book Collecting

The Essentials of Book Collecting

An Essay in Parts

by Robert F. Lucas

Robert F. Lucas 1942-2001

Robert F. Lucas' series of articles, "The Essentials of Book Collecting," was available on his website for a number of years, and was linked from

this and many other sites. With Bob's death in February, 2001, the Lucas

Books website went off the web. I received several requests for the series,

but unfortunately I did not have a copy.

A search of the web turned up a copy of the Table of Contents on an

International Book Collectors Association page, but the links were no

longer active. A further search supplied most of the articles, or at least

versions of them with the same or similar titles, at the I-Collect-It site,

submitted by Robert F. Lucas. Whether these articles are exactly the same

as those which appeared on the his website, I don't know. Two articles appear on the I-Collect-It pages which do not match the Table of Contents,

"Introduction" and "Investing in Antiquarian Books". Three articles in the

Table of Contents do not appear on the I-Collect-It pages, "Part 3 - Jargon -

Continuation of glossary", "Part 5 - Book collecting on the Internet", and

"Part 12- Starting your collection".

I have combined the existing articles and renumbered them to present

once more as cohesive a whole as possible: I believe this would be

acceptable to Bob Lucas, and useful to those interested in Book Collecting.

ST - 10/10/01

revised 7/20/02

Part 1 - Introduction

Part 2 - Importance of priority relative to book collecting

Part 3 - Jargon - Reading a catalog description

Part 4 - Jargon - Condition and its importance

Part 5 - Bibliographies and other useful references

Part 6 - Rarity & scarcity and supply & demand

Part 7 - Ephemera - what is it and is it part of book collecting

Part 8 - Understanding book values & pricing

Part 9 - Some physical aspects of the book - bindings & paper

Part 10 - Book illustrations - variety of & illustrators

Part 11 - Investing in Antiquarian Books

Introduction

This essay on book collecting is intended for potential book collectors and neophytes to

this field of collecting and it will likely prove boring to those who are established book

collectors and probably to some who are not. Our intention is to acquaint you with this

interesting hobby, to explain the terminology or jargon, and to dispel a few myths or

misconceptions.

For some reason, there seems to be a certain mystique which has grown up around and

has entwined this hobby — an aura of sophistication and perhaps a bit of snobbery —

which sometimes causes would-be book collectors to avoid this interesting hobby, excuse

me — avocation! This hobby is for everyone who appreciates books! The bottom line is

that collecting books is both challenging and fun!

You can collect in any of a mind-boggling number of areas — this hobby has more

variety within it than any other collecting field we can imagine. You can collect your

favorite author; an author you always wanted-to-read, but- never-had-the-time; a subject

about which you wish to learn more — i.e. the American Indian, or the American Indian of

the 19th century, or the Blackfoot Tribe or the agriculture of the Algonquins — you can

collect recent in-print books, books from the 19th century, books from the first century of

printing, paperback books, pulp magazines, fine leather bindings, historic newspapers,

pamphlets from the period of the American Revolution or the French Revolution or Viet

Nam, books printed on mission presses in the Pacific, or even books about book collecting!

If you like the rock & roll music from the 50's and 60's you can collect books in that

area — if you like astrophysics, genetics, parapsychology, calculus, French, Russian,

Japanese, tennis, golf, fishing, swimming, biking, horticulture, flower arranging — it is

possible to build a book collection around virtually any subject. In our estimation, that is

the truly great aspect of book collecting — the individuality — your collection will reflect

your personal interests and efforts and abilities as a collector.

Book collecting is expensive! Not true! You can spend as little or as much as you are

able and willing to spend on your collection. Some collectors purchase only new in-print

books, others buy only at yard sales and library book sales, others visit their neighborhood

used book shop, others order only from mail order antiquarian book catalogs, and many are

now buying books on the world wide web. If you are very limited in discretionary funding

or very frugal, you could even hold yourself to a maximum of $1.00 (US or the equivalent)

per volume by buying at flea markets and yard sales and slowly build an interesting and

potentially valuable collection.

Many collectors purchase their books from a wide variety of sources and limit their

purchases to expenditures they can afford; often making purchases in the $10 to $100

range, occasionally more for a scarce or very desirable item. There are also many items

available for those who can afford to spend hundreds or thousands on a single volume.

Part 2 - Importance of priority relative to book collecting

Book collectors have a high regard for priority; they search for first EDITIONS, first

PRINTINGS, first ISSUES, first STATES, first BOOKS (of specific authors), first

APPEARANCES, and earliest IMPRINTS! You could go against the grain and collect

second editions or second printings, but if you ever decided to sell or otherwise dispose of

your collection you would likely find that your collection would attract less interest than a

similar collection of books in first editions.

Those who collect literature rather than non-fiction often place the greatest emphasis on

priority. They search not only for first editions, but usually want first printings of the

edition and the earliest issues or states when priority has been established.

Many collectors of non-fiction often will settle for a later edition or a later printing; most

do prefer first editions, but the emphasis tends to be more on the content of the book rather

than sequence in printing history. In fact, the "best" edition of some non-fiction classics is

the revised or updated editions which sometimes is a third edition or even later and contains

additional information of value to the collector.

The definitions of "first edition", "state", and "issue" are complex and the terms are

interpreted in many ways — we will attempt to provide relatively simple definitions, to

which there will be exceptions — our object is to provide you with a general concept of

each term:

Edition — the copies of a book or other printed material which originate from the same plates or setting of type. If 500 copies of a book are printed on Oct. 5 and 300 copies are printed from the same substantially unchanged plates on Dec. 10, all 800 copies are part of the same edition.

Printing — the copies of a book or other printed material which originate from the same press run or from the same plates or setting of type at one time. In the example given for "Edition" above, the 500 copies would be the first printing and the 300 copies comprise the second printing. In the 19th century some publishers labeled later printings as if they were later editions, i.e. a second printing would be called a "second edition" on the copyright page.

First Edition — All of the copies printed from the first setting of type; can include multiple printings if all are from the same setting of type. Every printed book has a first edition, many never have later editions. A later edition would have substantial changes in the printing plates or type such as the addition of a new preface or new chapter or major changes throughout the text and often is printed from a complete resetting of the type. When book collectors use the term first edition, they are usually referring to the first printing and if there are different states or issues, the earliest of those.

Issue — a portion of an edition printed or published deliberately by the printer or publisher in a distinct form differing from the rest of the printing relative to paper, binding, format, etc. The distinction between "issue" and "state" is that the former relates to changes done on purpose by the publisher or printer and intentionally treated as a separate unit, i.e. a large paper issue or an issue in publisher's leather.

State — a portion of a printing with changes such as minor alterations to the text either intentional or accidental; insertion of cancels, advertisements or other insertions; copies on different paper without intention of creating a separate issue; and changes other than folding or collating or binding. An example would be when a pressman discovers battered or broken type, stops the presses and resets that portion of the page by replacing the broken type and then resumes the printing, which would result in at least two states.

Variants — usually refers to differences in bindings or endpapers ( paper located just inside the front and rear covers, one half of which is glued to the cover). One variant may have a title stamped on the front cover in black and another may be stamped in red.

First Books — the first book appearance by an author (usually refers to a book entirely by the author, not merely a first appearance of a poem or short story in an anthology). Frequently an established, well-known author's first book is not widely known; i.e. James Fenimore Cooper's "Precaution".

First Appearances — this term can refer to several different concepts: o The first time an author appears in print, i.e. Henry D. Thoreau's first appearance

in print was as an anonymous obituary in a Concord newspaper o The first time a specifc writing of an author appears (in a magazine or newspaper

or anthology), Emily Dickinson's poem "I'm nobody Who are you" appears first in "Life", March 1891

o The first time a specific subject is treated in book form, i.e. the first American book on the subject of dryfly fishing was written by Emlyn Gill and published in 1913.

Robert Frost's first book is entitled "A Boy's Will" and the first edition was published in

London in 1913 and occurs with four different binding variants. The first American edition

of "A Boy's Will" was published in New York in 1915 and occurs in two states (some refer

to as issues) with the first state having an error in the last line of page 14 reading "Aind"

instead of "And".

Try searching for this title in one of the major antiquarian book databases and read the

descriptions to find which copies are first editions, first printings, first states or issues, etc.

ABE database — Type "Frost" for the author and "Boy's Will" (without quotation marks) in the Search form, click on "Start Search" and see what results.

Part 3 - Jargon - Reading a catalog description

In this part we will look at a few actual bookseller catalog entries and "walk" through

the descriptions with you, explaining the terminology. Reading and interpreting an

antiquarian book catalog is just as easy as reading anything else once you understand the

specific jargon. We will provide a link to each bookseller whose catalog entry is used so

that you may visit their site and see other similar entries by the same bookseller. Near the

end of this part we will include a brief glossary to the most commonly used terms used to

describe antiquarian books.

First we should define a term we have been using - antiquarian book!

An antiquarian book should refer to an old and "rare" book, preferably 100 years old or

more, similar to an antique, BUT with common useage the term has come to mean any

book that is out-of-print, old, rare, scarce, common , used, remaindered - virtually any book

that is not a new or in-print book.

Most antiquarian booksellers would probably prefer to believe that they do not buy and

sell "used books" or otherwise common, out-of-print books (no longer available as new

books), but with a few exceptions most of us have a stock that is far ranging and often

includes some recently out-of-print volumes and other less than "rare" books.

The first book catalog entry we are providing is from Second Life Books, Inc. Second

Life Books, Inc. Catalogue 115N An Antiquarian Miscellany:

[this catalog is no longer on line at Second Life Books. <ST>]

A leader of the "Hartford Wits," Dwight also served as a chaplain in the Revolutionary War. This

was one of his most popular poems and includes a vivid description of the burning of Fairfield

Connecticut by the British in 1779.

The item number (129) should be used to reference the book when ordering. Next the author

(Dwight, Timothy) is listed followed by the title (Greenfield Hill:a poem in seven parts).

The next section is the "imprint" virtually always at the foot of the title page and it

usually includes the city (NY) (of the publisher or sometimes the printer), the name of the

publisher (Childs & Swaine), and the year of publication (1794). When the year listed is

enclosed in parentheses that normally indicates that the year is missing from the imprint

and the date given is the latest year of copyright or otherwise presumed year of the

publication

This is the first edition and occurs as an octavo (8vo) size volume, approximately nine

inches tall (see definition in glossary). The volume has 184 pages and when the page

number occurs in parentheses it indicates that the final page (184) or sometimes all of the

pages are not numbered.

The condition of the book is listed next - "Some foxed" means that there is at least

occasional foxing (the rust-colored spots that occur on paper resulting from certain mold

fungi); "removed from a bound volume" means that this book (or pamphlet) had been

bound with other pamphlets in a single volume and that volume was "broken" and this item

was removed, which also means that the item now exits without any binding. "A very good

copy" gives the bookseller's impression of the overall condition of the book (later we will

provide a whole section on condition - a very important aspect of book collecting).

"Evans 26925 and BAL 5048" refer to bibliographies or other references which list and

describe the item, the numbers are the entry number in the reference. Evans is a thirteen

volume set by Charles Evans which attempted to list and describe essentially everything

printed in Colonial America prior to 1801. BAL is the Bibliography of American Literature

compiled by Jacob Blanck and Michael Winship et al. (and others).

"Scarce" is an indication of the relative availability of the book as an opinion of the

bookseller. The price ($145) is listed next, followed by annotations or notes to further

describe the book and/or the author.

For the next entry we will skip over terms already covered and just discuss those which

are "new". The following catalogue entry is from Ten Pound Island Book Company's

Maritime List 109W:

[this catalog is no longer online at Ten Pound Island Book Company. <ST>]

There are black and white plates (b/w) (separately printed illustrations, often added to the text

prior to binding) and the book occurs as a 2 volume set (2 vols.) There are 34 pages of preliminary

matter (probably table of contents, preface and possibly introduction) which are numbered with

roman numerals. The first volume has 494 pages, but page 494 is not numbered, hence it occurs in

parentheses. The second volume contains pages 495-899.

Forster 128 refers to number 128 in Honore Forster's "The South Sea Whaler. An Annotated

Bibliography" published by the Kendall Whaling Museum in Sharon, MA in 1985. A slipcase is a box

usually made of paper-covered relatively thin cardboard (not the corrugated board found in

"cardboard boxes") with one end open so that one or several volumes (in this case two volumes)

can be slipped into the box for protection. Glassine wrappers are a transparent, usually only semi-

transparent or opaque, cellophane-like paper protective cover similar to a paper dust jacket, but

normally without any printing which is common on a dust jacket.

This next catalogue entry is from De Wolfe & Wood's catalogue 25 The Shakers and

other American Communal Groups:

[this catalog is no longer online at De Wolfe & Wood's. <ST>]

23. [Catalog]. CATALOGUE AND PRICE LIST OF SHAKERS' CHAIRS. [n.p.]: Canaan Printing Co.,

[n.d.]. 16 pp. Very good in original yellow wraps. (R239) $525.00. A wonderful chair catalog with

great illustrations. The first chair catalog we have had in a number of years.

The "n.p." in brackets refers to "no place of publication known" (no city listed in the imprint - if

the city is known from a bibliographic entry or a printer's imprint elsewhere in the catalog, then

the city would be given enclosed within parentheses). One also sees the use of n.p. without

bracketts, without periods, and sometimes in upper case letters (NP). The "n.d.", as you have

probably guessed, refers to "no date of publication known", this also occurs without brackets,

sometimes without periods, and seldom in upper case letters. Occasionally in place of "n.d." one

will find "circa 1930" (or any other year, which is presumed to be the approximate year of

publication). Circa is sometimes abbreviated as "ca." or simply "c".

Yellow wraps defines this book as a pamphlet with yellow paper covers. Wraps is a

commonly used abbreviation for the word "wrappers", which when used by itself does not

refer to "dust wrappers" which is another term sometimes used for "dust jacket". When one

sees "wraps" or "wrappers" the item is a pamphlet with paper covers, often of a different

weight and color than the text pages.

Part 4 - Jargon - Condition and its importance

"Condition is important to book collectors" is probably an understatement! When

considering the addition of a book to your collection — you must consider condition of the

book. A good adage to follow would be to "always choose the best condition copy that you

can afford" with two important "ifs": if the copy is reasonably priced and if you cannot

expect to find a better copy then you must decide whether to settle for a copy in lesser

condition.

If you decide to settle for a volume in less than desirable condition, it is normally with

the hopes of upgrading when you have the opportunity to purchase a better copy. This is a

personal decision, some collectors would prefer to not have a book in their collection if the

condition does not meet their standards, and other collectors prefer to have a copy of the

book even in lesser condition because they believe that it may be a long time before they

have an opportunity to locate a very good or fine copy.

What constitutes a very good copy or a fine copy? Defining categories of condition is a

subjective business and applying the categories to rate a specific book is even more

subjective. Over the years there have been attempts to establish what one might call a

"uniform code" of definitions of condition which would be acceptable to all. However, due

to the subjective nature such categories or ratings have been applied with considerable

variation by very new booksellers versus those in the business for decades, by collectors of

modern first editions versus collectors of local histories and genealogies, by a

knowledgeable collector offering duplicates for sale versus someone who found a carton of

dusty books in the attic — it is possible to define categories of condition, but difficult and

really impossible to "enforce" a standard application of the categories.

Probably the best avenue to follow when describing the condition of a book is to list all

of the obvious problems, defects and signs of wear and also to provide your impression of

the overall condition. When reading book descriptions one should pay attention to the listed

details of condition and to regard an overall condition term such as "good", "very good". or

"fine" as the general impression of the bookseller, which may or may not coincide with

your general impression of the same volume. Often you may find the volume to be in better

condition than you expected, other times in lesser condition. Virtually all booksellers want

you to be pleased with the book(s) you purchase and hope that you remain a customer and

for that reason prefer that you return the book(s) for a refund if you are not happy with the

condition.

Most of us have seen descriptions of book condition which read like — "scattered

foxing, rubbing at corners and extremities of spine, weak hinge, otherwise very good

condition" or "dust jacket with minor chips, rear free endpaper lacking, signature on title

page but really much better condition than it sounds". If you don't want a book with a weak

hinge or a book with a missing endpaper, do not order the book — if the book is one for

which you have been searching for ten years and this may be your only chance to purchase

it, you probably should tolerate the damaged hinge or missing end paper — it is a personal

decision.

Traditionally, book condition relates to the age of the book. A fine copy of a 1980

modern first edition is expected to be near perfect versus a fine copy of an 1840 traveler's

guide to the Western United States which will have very minor wear or perhaps very minor

foxing or very minor soil or very minor rubbing on the covers — minor blemishes due to

the expected handling of the book for approximately 160 years.

Some types of books are much more difficult to find in fine condition — those that

normally receive considerable usage as opposed to being read once or a few times —

cookbooks and children's books come to mind. If you collect 19th and 18th century

cookbooks, you may have difficulty finding fine copies and may have to to settle for very

good copies of the more common titles and good copies of the scarce or rare titles. And you

will probably have to pay a premium should you have the opportunity to purchase a fine

copy of a rare 19th century cookbook.

We will make an attempt to define some commonly used categories of condition for

those of you who are new to book collecting — to give you a general concept of what to

expect when reading descriptions of condition. If you have been involved in book

collecting or bookselling for some time, you will probably disagree with the definitions,

having developed your own concepts over the years — we ask that you bear with us as we

attempt these definitions.

Fine — if a 20th century book, the condition should be almost "like new"

with only very, very minor signs of use, no discernable wear or rubbing, no

fading of the spine, no dogeared page corners — possibly lacking the fresh

or crisp look of a brand new book and intact — nothing missing — no

missing endpapers and if issued with a dust jacket, the dj must be separately

described. If an older book, 19th century or earlier, slightly more signs of

usage are tolerated, but still a well-cared-for, fresh looking book — very

minor rubbing , very minor fading of cloth or color of boards, but no

cracked hinges, a few specks of foxing, nothing missing — no missing

endpaper, half-title or spine labels. In both the 20th century and the earlier

book, there should not be any library markings (public or institutional),

however there may be a bookplate from a private collector

Very Good — a 20th century book should show only minor rubbing at book

extremities such as corners or spine, possibly very minor soil or very minor

spots on covers, possibly a bumped corner, no fraying of spine extremities,

no cracked hinges, no foxing — nothing missing — no missing endpapers

— essentially just a little more evidence of use than a fine copy. If 19th

century or earlier, minor rubbing of extremities is expected, no chipping

(missing material) at top or bottom of spine, no signs of major fraying of

cloth, no cracked hinges or cracked joints, possibly minor spots of soil or

stain and occasional foxing is expected — nothing should be missing, no

missing endpaper or half-title. A very good copy can be ex-library with

library markings, but should be so described and with few exceptions the ex-

library copy would not be a desirable book to add to your collection

Good — either a 20th century or an earlier book showing average use and

wear, but not in need of a replacement binding, not all tattered & torn, not

with moderate to heavy damp stain, basically still intact but worn, spine

extremities can show minor chipping, corners can all be bumped, and (there

is disagreement here) in the case of an earlier book a free endpaper, or other

blank page such as a flyleaf, can be missing, a hinge can be cracked ( the

book should not be in need of recasing — with the covers barely attached),

there can be moderate to heavy foxing in earlier books, a good copy should

be a book that has seen average/considerable use and is added to your

collection because you care more about the content of the book than the

condition or you hope someday to upgrade to a better copy of the same book

Fair — a book with much use and wear and multiple problems and/or

defects and unless the book is very scarce or rare probably should not be

added to your collection. A fair copy may exhibit moderate to heavy

dampstain, excessive stain or foxing in the text, a very tattered cloth or very

scuffed and rubbed leather binding with additional problems such as

underlining in the text, lacking endpapers, both hinges cracked, heavy

dogearring of page corners — in general only a step above a reading copy

and not a desirable copy unless you value content much more than condition

Binding copy — a copy in need of a replacement backstrip or spine or in

need of recasing or reattachment of the original binding or recasing with a

new binding; the book should be in very good condition otherwise — the

covers in very good condition in the case of need for new backstrip and the

text portion of the book in clean, very good condition in both cases or the

expense of rebinding is not warranted

Reading copy — a copy in poor condition, practically synonymous with

binding copy (when only the covers are excessively worn), but also used to

describe a copy with excessive wear and/or abuse which does not warrant

rebinding and is simply useful for the content it contains, sometimes referred

to as a working copy

Some booksellers, and we are among them, choose to use intermediate categories such

as "very good to fine" or "good to very good", when they believe that such categories are

warranted. When a book is better than very good but not quite fine (in the case of a 19th

century book perhaps a little too much rubbing on the cloth) we use the VG to Fine

designation. When a book is better than good condition, but is not quite very good (perhaps

has moderate foxing or a small amount of very minor dampstain) we rate it as G to VG.

In summary, you should pay close attention to the listed details or specifics of wear

and/or defects in a book description and you should realize that the overall rating of

condition is the opinion of the bookseller or other individual writing the description. In

most cases books are returnable for a refund when you believe they are not as described —

and many booksellers allow the return of a book should you be dissatisfied with the

condition for any reason, read each booksellers "terms" or "policy" statement prior to

ordering to see if and when returns are allowed.

As a beginning book collector you should strive to collect books of very good or fine

condition. There may be some bargains among the very worn books, but you should

probably avoid the worn bargains unless you know the book is very scarce or rare. In

general do not purchase books or pamphlets which are missing pages or portions of text,

unless you have a personal reason for doing so — a book missing the top third of pages

102-103 will never have much value. And in general it is a poor idea to purchase odd

volumes (not complete set) of a set, thinking that you will be able to find the missing

volumes at a later date — it seldom happens.

For practice deciphering the description of book conditions, you are invited to visit our

web site and read the descriptions at http://www.lucasbooks.com/emily.html or

http://www.lucasbooks.com/books.html (hopefully we practice what we preach more often

than not) or visit the many on-line catalogues listed on the ABAA page.

Part 5 - Bibliographies and other useful references

References, and bibliographies in particular, are the tools of a book collector. You can

collect books without ever using a reference, but you will be missing much of the

satisfaction of collecting. You might think the first edition of your favorite author's first

book, "Pruning Willows for Fun & Profit", is common because you found two copies of it

during the past year at Bob's Used Books on Main Street, but if you owned the bibliography

of this author's work you might find that "Pruning Willows" was published in an edition of

only 100 copies and is a very rare book. You might also learn that this author's third book is

the scarcest of all his writings, with only two located copies of a possible total edition of

ten and that you should purchase this book without hesitation if you are lucky enough to

see a copy. A biography of the author might be the source where you learn that his

correspondence with the chief horticulturist at the Philadelphia Arboretum has been

published as part of the memoirs of the horticulturist.

References provide information which is extremely valuable to book collectors — they

aid in the identification of first printings, help determine scarcity, let you know what is

available in your chosen field of collecting, help with collation of pages and illustrations to

determine whether a copy is complete, provide information on variety of bindings to

expect, give details on the non-fiction subject or life of the author you collect, and are the

essential ingredients for initiating and building a successful book collection.

Many bibliographies and other references are relatively expensive because they are

normally published in small editions. If you cannot afford to purchase the references

appropriate to your collection, you should be able to find many of them in most large

university or major city library collections. You will, most likely, have to use the references

in the library so plan on spending some time there with pencil and notepad or make use of

copy machines for the information most useful to you.

References are so important that you will find, with few exceptions, that the information

you gain more than pays for the 'investment' in useful references. We would go so far as to

make this generalization: "you can never own too many references which relate to your

collection! "

If you decide to collect the writings of a specific author, during the early stages of

collecting you should determine whether a useful bibliography of that author's work exits

and, if it does, you should make that bibliography one of your early purchases. The same

holds true for collecting a specific topic, if you decide to collect 18th century American

almanacs you should own a copy of Milton Drake's "Almanacs of the United States" — if

you decide to collect books about Afro-American participation in the American Civil War,

you should own Thomas Moebs"s "Black Soldiers — Black Sailors — Black Ink: Research

Guide on African-Americans in U.S. Military History, 1526-1900."

Part 6 - Rarity & scarcity and supply & demand

There are many rare books for which there is virtually no market, i.e. Arthur Deco's

"Forty Years of My Poetry" which Art brought to a vanity publisher in 1965 and paid for

the publication of 200 copies. Only Art's cousins are looking for a copy; even his local

library has no interest in the book. To take this concept a step further, there are thousands

of titles of older fiction, most of which went through only one printing and for which there

is no interest, unless a scholar or bibliographer is studying that area of fiction.

In general, there is a lack of demand for old text books, old bibles, many self-help titles,

long out-of-date technology handbooks, old encyclopedias, poetry by unknown poets, older

fiction by unknown authors and some local business histories; and many of these books are

either rare or scarce. In other words, not every rare book is valuable.

Another misconception is that every first edition is collectible and valuable. One has

only to understand that every book has a first edition and only popular or successful titles

have more than one printing to see that not every first edition is desirable for definitions of

edition and printing). One could assemble an interesting (?) and fascinating (?) collection of

esoteric, undesirable "rare" books for which there is little or no demand.

The concept of a "rare book" is easy to comprehend — it is a book which is seldom

encountered and presumably exists in very small numbers. To define the term "rare book"

is more difficult — I prefer to define it based on the frequency it is seen by the

bibliographer, collector or antiquarian bookseller who is searching for copies on a continual

basis. A rare book is one encountered only occasionally by those working with and/or

collecting books in the specific genre. How frequently? — that is the question that

separates a "rare book" from a "scarce book".

A book which is encountered about once every five years or less frequently is a rare

book (in the case of a specialized bookseller, in his/her stock) (in the case of a collector —

having a specific opportunity to purchase the book) (in the case of a bibliographer, locating

a "previously unrecorded" copy). A very scarce book might be encountered more

frequently, but less often than once a year, perhaps once every two to four years. A scarce

book is normally encountered approximately once a year by those actively seeking it. An

uncommon book may be in the stock of a specialty bookseller four or five times a year, but

is not always readily available as is a common book. Theoretically you should have no

problem finding a fine copy of a common book at any time, an uncommon book may take a

bit of searching.

These artificial "standards" provide you with at least some guide to understanding rarity

and scarcity, but obviously are only a relative guide. A book you, as a collector, have the

opportunity to purchase ten times per year obviously is not rare nor is it scarce. When an

antiquarian bookseller has five copies of a specific title for sale during any one year, it is

not a rare book nor is it scarce. There can be exceptions to the rule — we once had an

opportunity to buy three copies of a rare whaling narrative at one time from a collector who

had been fortunate to be able to locate that many copies during a decade. During more than

twenty five years of bookselling, we have only had one other copy of that same title.

The Internet with its speedy international communications will probably make scarce

and even rare titles more accessible and the frequency of encounter will increase, thus a

book which might have been available for purchase only once every five years might be

encountered once every three years! Another factor that occasionally has an affect on level

of scarcity is the "sudden" appearance of an accumulation or quantity of a previously rare

or scarce book. This seems to happen most often with pamphlets and broadsides. A carton

full of a previously scarce bicycle catalog or a Civil War regimental history or a stack of

200 broadsides announcing the formation of a company of gold miners in 1849 may be

found in an attic and soon after one starts to see clean, crisp, fine copies of these scarce or

even rare items appearing on the market. This type of occurrence obviously changes the

status of the item, and although it may still be uncommon and still desirable in your

collection — it is no longer scarce or rare.

When a scarce or rare item is offered for sale in fine condition at a price which seems

too good to be true, you might inquire whether a large quantity of the item has appeared on

the market. Even if that is the case, you probably should still purchase the item if it fits well

into your collection and you like the price. Accumulations like these often "disappear" into

collections in fast order and the item almost as suddenly again becomes much more

difficult to obtain.

When you are just starting as a book collector, you do not have the luxury of one or two

decades of experience as a collector and you must rely on antiquarian book catalogues,

bibliographies, annual compilations of auction records and national bibliographic card

catalogues such as the pre-1956 National Union Catalogue or the British Museum

Catalogue to assist you in determining the relative scarcity of a book.

Many bibliographies list locations (libraries) which hold particular titles. Sometimes the

bibliographer, rather than attempting to locate every known copy, limits the locations to a

few as examples of where to find the item. Even when the bibliographer attempts to locate

every known copy, there will usually be many unreported copies not listed. Be careful

when using bibliographies as a guide to scarcity and read the preface and/or introduction to

determine the bibliographer's intent.

One can use a reference such as Milton Drake's "Almanacs of the United States" as a

relative guide to scarcity. Drake lists 20 or 30 or even more locations for reasonably

common almanacs, but when he locates only one copy, the almanac is probably very scarce

and possibly rare. When he locates only three or four copies the almanac is probably scarce.

Use bibliographies such as Drake as a guide to "relative" scarcity.

Wright Howes's "U.S.iana (1650-1950) A Selective Bibliography"makes no attempt to

provide library locations for books, but does provide a "value symbol" for each item listed.

The values associated with each symbol are now out-of-date, but the "value symbols" do

have value as a measure of relative scarcity.

a — "mildly scarce, obtainable without much difficulty"

aa — "quite scarce, obtainable only with some difficulty"

b — "mildly rare, obtainable only with considerable difficulty"

c — "quite rare, obtainable only with much difficulty"

d — "very rare books, obtainable only with great difficulty"

dd — "superlatively rare books, almost unobtainable"

Personally we do not regard most "a" rating books as scarce, we would categorize many of

them as uncommon or common, but most "aa" books are scarce and books with a rating of "b" or

higher are usually rare books which are not easy to obtain.

Another way of determining relative scarcity is to use the annual compilations of book

auction records such as "American Book Prices Current". Because such compilations

usually exclude common items, one has to be cautious about making extrapolations. If you

look through the last ten years of auction records and find no copy of a particular title

listed- it is probably either very common or rare. One would be better off to find one copy

listed in the last ten years rather than no copies.

When at least one copy of a title is listed in virtually every year of the auction records,

one can assume that it is neither very scarce nor rare. When a copy is listed only once every

five years, the item is probably at least very scarce and possibly rare. If you find a listing

only once every ten years, the book should probably be considered rare. If multiple copies

of a book are listed every year, the book can still be considered scarce and desirable and is

probably very much in demand or it wouldn't be consigned to auction so frequently. One

must remember that most auction house are not interested in offering common books, thus

most titles found in the auction records are at least uncommon and probably scarce.

We find the pre-1956 imprints National Union Catalogue (NUC) valuable in

determining relative scarcity. The NUC with its huge number of volumes often takes up a

whole wall of book shelving in many libraries and is a compilation of the holdings of all

reporting libraries (hundreds, if not thousands of libraries in the United States). Most large

college and university libraries and most major city libraries have the NUC.

In general, when there are only one or two or three locations given for a particular item,

the assumption can be made that the item is rare. When there are a reasonable number of

holdings listed — from three to ten the item is probably scarce (very scarce might be

represented by 4 or 5 locations. When there are quite a number of locations, 11 to 20

locations, the item may be considered uncommon in most cases. When there are 20 to 30 or

more locations, the item is probably common. We find that certain areas such as children's

books and cook books, the generalizations may not hold up due to fewer holdings in these

areas in most libraries, i.e. a common cookbook may have only 10 locations listed. Please

remember that we are making generalizations and that they are meant to be used only as a

rough guide.

Antiquarian booksellers catalogues may also be used as a guide to scarcity, but be

careful with your assumptions. Do not assume that because you did not find your favorite

bird book listed in any of the ten ornithology catalogs you own, that the book is rare. In

fact, the book may be so common or of so little demand that the natural history booksellers

seldom catalogue it.

Perhaps one of the best ways to use bookseller catalogs as a guide to scarcity is to rely

on the expertise of the antiquarian bookseller and make note of items he or she list as "very

scarce" or "rare". Obviously a decade or more in the business of selling antiquarian books

provides the bookseller with the requisite experience for making knowledgeable

judgements about scarcity (particularly in the specific specialty areas of that bookseller).

Equally obvious would be that the experience found in a catalogue number one would not

be the same as catalogue number twenty by the same bookseller.

Part 7 - Ephemera - what is it and is it part of book

collecting

The Mayfly, a beautiful, fragile-appearing, almost fairy-like insect with transparent

wings, lives from six weeks to three years as an underwater stage and then emerges as an

adult to live only one or two days. Because of this very brief life (as an adult) the Mayflies

as a group are classified in the insect family Ephemeridae, which comes from the Greek

word ephemeros (meaning daily or on a day or approximately a day) and the Greek word

for the mayfly actually is "ephemeron". These beautiful creatures are not to be confused

with the tiny black fly (also called mayfly) which comes out in hordes in the spring in

northern temperate areas looking for mammalian blood.

Anything short-lived or with a short-term usefulness can be referred to as ephemeral.

Years ago, probably in the early nineteenth century, collectors began referring to printed,

paper material, which was never bound in the form of a book or pamphlet and which had a

limited, short-term life, as "ephemera". This non-book printed material includes calendars,

labels, bookplates, advertising cards, letters (correspondence), deeds & other documents,

broadsides, posters, transportation time tables, newspapers, sheet music, stock certificates,

matchbooks, business brochures, rewards of merit, tickets, invitations, greeting cards,

playing cards, paper toys, etc. Decades ago the concept evolved to include most forms of

pamphlets — especially those with short-term usefulness such as magazines, theater

program & other event programs, almanacs, trade catalogs, promotional material,

investment prospecti, annual reports of towns & businesses, comic books, pamphlet

cookbooks, museum exhibition catalogs, etc.

Today, the only printed paper material, which seems to be excluded from the concept of

ephemera is hard-bound books. Most collectors would include printing on cloth in the form

of menus, tickets, broadsides and other similar uses as ephemera. Some ephemera

collectors even include short-lived items printed on metal such as tobacco tins and license

plates and on wood or plastic such as yard sticks or meter sticks.

A few collectors believe the term "ephemera" as used to describe printed material was

coined in the 1970's, but one has only to look through early 20th century antiquarian book

catalogues to see the use of the term to describe "non-books". In fact, we have a copy of a

Catalogue issued by Goodspeeds Book Shop in Boston (when the business was located at 7

Ashburton Place) entitled "Ephemera Americana, A collection of manuscripts, printed and

engraved documents, and small prints, illustrating phases of American business, social, and

political life from 1638 to 1875" which, although the catalogue is not dated, is from the mid

1930's. This catalogue offers incredible ephemera at prices which would be considered a

dream today.

A few examples follow (please do not call to order these — the prices are from the

1930's):

33. THREE TICKETS IN A LOTTERY granted by act of the General Court of the Province of

Massachusetts Bay for rebuilding Fanuel-Hall. The first of them dated June, 1765, is signed by John

Hancock. The two specimens following, dated 1768-69, are signed respectively by John Ruddock

and Thomas Cushing. The three $25.00

68. TRADE CARD OF JONATHAN HARRIS 24 Cornhill, Boston, and store adjoining,

English goods of every kind. Fine wood-cut heading showing a view of the store front,

figures of men and women walking alng the sidewalk. A manuscript bill is written on the

back. Fine and rare specimen. Printed broadside. 1p. Sm. quarto. $15.00

90. NINE EXCELLENT SPECIMENS of the "Reward of Merit" used in primary

schools a hundred years or more ago. The illustrations are both on copper and wood and

include a view of the State House, Boston, boys skating, children playing ball, a plowman,

school declamation, rolling the hoop, etc. The 9 pieces $4.00

102. SAML. STURGIS, HAT MAKER, opposite the Golden Key, Fore St., Boston.

Copper plate engraved label. $1.00

Most of us would love to order all four lots and we would be very pleased to pay the prices

asked for these interesting pieces of ephemera in the 1930's.

Why is there such an interest in collecting scraps of printed paper which were meant to

be thrown away — why care about a ticket to a town band concert in 1851 or a calendar for

the year 1895? There are at least three good reasons (and probably many more) for

collecting ephemera:

These "scraps" of paper are a historical record of a country or region's culture including

every aspect of society such as business, social events, politics, entertainment, literature,

art, music, food, drink — all aspects of everyday living!

The study of printing history — ephemera was produced prior to the advent of printing,

during the incunable period of printing (the first decades), through the advent of various

printing presses, during the use of woodcuts, wood engraving, copperplate engraving,

lithography, stereotyping, steelplate engraving, chromolithography to modern offset and

laser printing.

The study of design — the art work, illustrations, typefaces, color inks, types of paper

and other media. One can study specific periods of style such as early Victorian, Art

Nouveau, Art deco and follow the evolution of design in all forms of ephemera including

the recent advent of the use of holograms on ephemera.

If you stop for a few minutes to think about the vast quantity and variety of modern

ephemera that you have used during the past month, you would easily understand how

ephemera is a record of everyday life. You have probably used newspapers, magazines,

receipts from all sorts of purchase, tickets to a movie or concert, food packaging, slips to

pick up processed photographs or laundry, receipts from banking, advertising brochures,

grocery store coupons, fast-food paper place mats, posters or handbills you have read, mail

sent and received, birthday cards, invitations to a friend's social event and the list goes on.

One can easily get caught up in the "frenzy" of collecting ephemera — people do collect

modern ephemera such as place mats, cereal boxes, matchbooks, tickets, movie posters, and

even restaurant doggie bags. Other collectors collect only antiquarian ephemera and often

only in a very narrow area such as rewards of merit, advertising or trade cards, postcards,

valentines, letterheads, labels, tickets, clipper ship cards, theater programs, etc. Many book

collectors look for antiquarian ephemera related to their collecting interest(s) to supplement

their collection and often end up building separate collections of ephemera. Collecting

ephemera is very challenging and can be a rewarding hobby.

There are a number of ephemera collecting fields that have been pursued by many

collectors for many years and have developed as separate, well-established hobbies:

postcard collecting, stamp collecting, map collecting, autograph collecting, comic book

collecting, baseball and other sportcard collecting are a few examples. These areas have

developed self-supporting infrastructures and there are organizations and clubs and sales

events or shows or swap-meets and exhibitions and although there is considerable overlap

between the collectors in these established fields with ephemera collectors in general, there

is also a large degree of separation. At general ephemera shows/exhibitions you will find

some comic book dealers and some postcard dealers, but the bulk of activity remains away

from the general ephemera events and is well-sustained within the established venues.

Although there are trade or advertising card collector, newspaper collector, and stock

certificate collector associations and other similar organizations, the majority of these

ephemera collectors are also very involved in general "paper" or ephemera events and

organizations. In the remainder of this part we will provide links to some ephemera

organizations, ephemera fairs/shows or exhibitions and examples of some dealers as well as

web sites specializing in ephemera.

There are two major ephemera collector associations which we will bring to your

attention, both have web sites:

The Ephemera Society, 8 Galveston Road, London SW15 2SA an international society

formed in 1975 to bring together ephemera collectors, visit their web site for information

on membership, publications and activities

The Ephemera Society of America, PO Box 95, Cazenovia, NY 13035 Established in

1980, an American "sister" organization to the London-based society, offers publications,

workshops, conferences, and annual ephemera shows as well as smaller regional bazaars;

and also has members from many other countries

Part 8 - Understanding book values & pricing

How do you as a collector know whether you are paying a fair price for a book, buying

the book at a bargain, or paying five times as much as other collectors? This question is

somewhat difficult to answer because there is no established, agreed-upon price for every

book — in fact, there really are no established, uniform price standards that are accepted by

all for any books. BUT there are ways of determining price or value ranges for individual

books and you, a beginning collector should become familiar with book values.

You should know what is available for price guides, annual compilations of auction

records, on-line pricing methods, and antiquarian bookseller catalogues. And you should

understand how to use these tools.

You should also understand that there is no price guide or set of auction records which

will include all books — in some cases, after hours of searching through various price

guides, on-line catalogues, etc. you still may not find your book listed, but with some

diligence you will determine the value of most items.

Before we discuss use of price guides, auction records, etc. there are a few general rules

of thumb that you should know.

The condition of a book or item of ephemera is a major element in

determining the value that item

The economic rule of supply and demand plays the major role in

determining the value of books and ephemera

The price of a book at auction is often a "wholesale" value when a bookseller

has bought the book with the intent of reselling it

A buyers premium is often paid at auction, which is added to the final bid

price, that premium is often ten percent

Although in general the value of collectible books increases with time, book

values do not always increase — sometimes they retreat

Investing in books for possible monetary gain is, at best, a long term

proposition, and most booksellers recommend that you collect books for the

pleasure derived from collecting rather than for investment purposes

Condition & Supply & Demand Relative to Value

A common book in fair condition usually has little or no value — one can easily find a

very good or fine copy of a common book. Even a common book in considerable demand

will still have a low monetary value. When one considers the lesser supply of an

uncommon or a scarce book, it is easy to understand that there might be a market for a good

copy, maybe even a fair copy and even in these lesser conditions the book now has some

value.

In the case of an uncommon book, the value of a good copy would probably be only 20

to 50% of the value of a fine copy of the same book when there is demand for the book. A

very good copy of the same book might bring 50 to 90% of the fine copy. These

percentages are just used as rough examples.

In the field of modern first literary books, if a desirable title lacks a dust jacket the value

fall off a precipice. If such a volume in fine condition with a fine dust jacket is selling for

$500, the same volume lacking the dust jacket is probably available in the $50 to $100

price range. (This means the dust jacket is worth $400 of the $500). If the volume not only

lacks the dust jacket but also is only a very good copy, the price is likely in the $25 to $50

price range. These are only examples — not steadfast rules — every book has a different

level of supply and a different level of demand.

In the field of Americana, the lack of a dust jacket on a $500 book in fine condition

might mean a price of $400 to $450 (the dust jacket is worth a lot less than in the case of a

modern first edition). If the book is in very good condition instead of fine, it might sell for

$400. Again these are only examples to provide a rough guide.

Supply and demand and condition are the most important factors in determining the

value of a book.

Part 9 - Some physical aspects of the book - bindings &

paper

Much has been written on the subjects of book bindings and paper and we will provide

you with a few of the many references on the two subjects. We also intend to provide you

with a few facts relating to these two physical aspects of the book, especially as they relate

to establishing approximate dates of paper manufacturing and changes in binding materials

and styles. Having a very basic knowledge of the chronology of types of paper and of

bindings will potentially aid you in dating undated material and also possibly help in the

detection of fraudulent material (sometimes one encounters broadsides, trade catalogs and

even books which are either improperly dated or are examples of later reprints retaining the

original date). This section is not intended as an in-depth study of these areas — only an

introduction.

The earliest paper used in books in America was handmade and imported from Europe,

primarily from England. The first paper mill in what is now the United States was in

operation in 1690 in Germantown, Pennsylvania. There continued to be extensive

importation of European paper until the period of the American Revolution; the impetus for

making paper in this country came from the Stamp Act of 1765 and really got its start when

the wire papermaking molds were first made in this country in 1776.

The early handmade paper used in the 17th and 18th centuries can be distinguished from

later paper by holding the paper up to a light and looking for "chain-lines" which are left

from the wires in the paper mold. Apparently fewer fibers accumulate directly on the wire,

thus the paper is slightly thinner and more transparent to light and thus shows the chain

pattern when held up to light. This pattern is usually very discernable and appears as

parallel lines, roughly an inch apart with many horizontal short lines connecting the long

wire lines. Some modern stationary paper has artificially applied chain lines and is usually

referred to as "laid" paper which is the proper name for the handmade chain-line paper.

This early handmade paper was made of 100% macerated rags, usually cotton and/or

linen, by hand dipping the large "square" paper mold into the fiber suspension and lifting

and shaking excess water & then partially drying the paper sheet before removal from the

mold. Modern handmade paper, often used in fine printing of small editions by private

presses, is made by essentially the same process and also usually shows chain-lines. Wood

pulp paper (made with a sulfite process causing high acid residue in the paper) was not

extensively used in this country until after the American Civil War. Thus early books made

of 100% rag paper are long lasting due to low acid content in the paper and also the

strength of handmade paper is superior due to the long length of fabric fibers as opposed to

wood fibers and the fact that machine made paper processes cause more fibers to orient in

the same direction, making the machine made paper easier to tear.

Watermarks are basically a "signature" or design or logo in the paper due to the same

process that leaves the chain lines. Early papermakers began "weaving" additional wires

into the wire mold in the form of a crest or initials or the year. The watermarks thus made

can be seen by holding the paper up to a light. The earliest American paper made in

Germantown, PA by William Rittenhouse in 1690 had a simple watermark which reads

"company". Other watermarks were soon used by this paper mill. Most 18th century paper

has watermarks which is one way of attaching an approximate date of manufacture to the

paper. Even paper which has no year in the watermark can be dated from the design in the

watermark. The following references are very helpful catalogues of watermarks for paper

used in America:

Gravell, Thomas L. and George Miller. A Catalogue of Foreign Watermarks Found on

Paper Used in America 1700 - 1835. New York and London, Garland Publishing, 1983.

Gravell, Thomas L. and George Miller. A Catalogue of American Watermarks 1690 -

1835. New York and London, Garland Publishing, 1979.

A major advance in papermaking occurred when "wove" paper was invented. Wove

paper was first used in a book printed in America in 1795 in a book by Charlotte Smith

entitled "Elegiac Sonnets and Other Poems" printed by Isaiah Thomas in Worcerster,

Massachusetts. Wove paper, which shows no chain-lines, is made on a wire mold often

made of brass and/or bronze wires which have been woven like a textile — thus there is no

chain-like pattern, but rather a smooth appearing paper; the first wove papers were often

referred to as vellum papers because of their smoothness. If you find a pamphlet or

broadside or a manuscript letter dated 1750, printed on wove paper, you have strong reason

to suspect the item comes from after 1795 rather than 1750. Wove paper became the

standard paper for books and other uses after 1800, though one continues to see some laid

or chain-link paper in use through approximately 1820 and even later.

The first machine made paper in America was made in 1817 in Brandywine, Delaware

and the first newspaper printed on this paper was "Poulson's Daily Advertiser" published in

Philadelphia in 1817. The major start in machine manufacturing of paper began when the

Fourdrinier paper machine came to be used in this country in 1827 in Saugerties, New

York, followed by the manufacture of these machines in South Windham, Connecticut in

1829. Machine made paper is more uniform in thickness, lacks the "deckle edges" (uneven

edges) of handmade paper and is weaker and more prone to tearing. Machine made paper is

made on a continuous wire mold which usually has watermarks. It is difficult to tell

machine made wove paper from handmade wove paper (often thickness and uniformity of

thickness are the discernable criteria).

Another major development in paper manufacture, already alluded to, was the

development of wood pulp paper — much less expensive to manufacture than rag paper.

The first wood pulp paper made in a successful manner was manufactured in 1854 in

Buffalo, New York. By 1860, 88% of the total paper production in this country was still rag

paper — most of the newspapers printed in the U.S. during the Civil War period survive in

a good state because they are essentially acid-free 100% rag paper, but the newspapers of

the 1880's and later turn brown and brittle due to high acid content of the wood pulp paper.

In 1882 the sulfite wood pulp process was developed on a scale and much of the high acid

content paper was used thereafter in newspapers, magazines and books.

In 1852 another development occurred which is useful in dating some types of

ephemera, especially trade or business cards and the wrappers of some pamphlets, was the

coating of paper stock with China clay to produce a very smooth, glossy surface. Thus trade

cards with the coated stock paper must date from that time or later.

In summary we offer a brief chronology of our very brief history of American

papermaking and we will provide an excellent reference and a few useful links.

1690 — the first American papermill established in Germantown, PA

1795 — first use of wove paper in an American book

1817 — first machine made paper in American at Brandywine, DE

1827 — first use of Fourdrinier paper machine in America

1829 — first American manufacture of the Fourdrinier machine

1852 — first coated stock paper in America

1854 — first American wood pulp paper; made in Buffalo, NY

1882 — first sulfite process wood pulp paper made on commercial scale

A very useful reference on history of papermaking and one we used to verify the dates

and information we have presented was written by Dard Hunter, who brought modern

handmade paper to the forefront and has done much to contribute to the history of

papermaking through both his practical work and authorship:

Hunter, Dard. Papermaking. The History and Technique of an Ancient Craft. New York,

Alfred A. Knopf, 1947.

A few useful links to papermaking and the craft of bookmaking and the book arts:

Book Arts Web many interesting book arts related links

Bookbinding and the Conservation of Books. A Dictionary of Descriptive

Terminology an excellent on-line dictionary by Matt Roberts & Don

Etherington

Robert C. Williams American Museum of Papermaking includes information

and a virtual tour of this papermaking museum at the Institute of Paper

Science and Technology

Bindings

This section will deal with a brief history of book binding and does not relate to books

bound in wrappers (pamphlets/magazines) or modern paperback books, but rather relates to

hardbound books.

The ability to assign an approximate date to a book based on the binding takes

considerable experience, but there are some "rules of thumb" which will aid you in this

endeavor. One must remember that occasionally a binding is newer than the book it encases

for one of several reasons: the volume was rebound to replace either a worn or broken or

less attractive original binding; or the volume was originally issued in simple, plain

"boards" (paper-covered boards) giving the purchaser an option to have a better binding

made; or the book existed in "sheets" (unbound, sometimes also unsewn signatures or

gatherings of leaves) for a time before being encased in a binding.

Early bindings of manuscripts prior to the use of moveable type often consisted of oak

or other wood, sometimes covered with leather or vellum, used as protective covers

attached to the body of text with leather thongs. To this day the front and rear covers of

books are referred to as boards. The leather thongs were eventually replaced with cords

made of hemp which attached the "boards" or covers to the body of text. Many times one

sees raised bands on the spine of 17th and 18th century books — these bands are caused by

the cords which were sewn to the text. Eventually the back of the unbound book was cut

with a binders saw to allow the binding cords to be inset, so they would not protrude

causing the raised bands on the spine.

Modern bindings, other than some handbound volumes, no longer make use of cords to

attach the book to its binding. The modern book has the binding or "case" constructed

separately and later attached primarily by the endpapers or in the case of so-called "perfect

bindings" the book is attached by gluing the spine portion of the binding to the back of the

book.

Most 18th century bindings consist of vellum or leather covered boards with raised

bands on the spine. These volumes often have leather labels, with the title and/or author gilt

stamped, glued into the panels or spaces between the raised bands. In the latter part of the

18th century one finds some books with the cords inset and the spine lacks the raised bands.

It is also in the latter part of the 18th century when publishers began issuing their books in

inexpensive, plain paper-covered boards (referred to simply as "boards") so that the book

owner could decide whether or not to have a better binding made for the volume. One also

finds the first use of cloth for bindings in the U.S. shortly after the American Revolution,

the cloth used was very coarsely woven linen and the only books bound in cloth seemed to

be a few textbooks. The real advent of the use of cloth by publishers in America occurs in

approximately 1827. Prior to the common use of cloth, a great many books were issued in

plain boards and sometimes the boards were printed with the title and a fancy ornamental

border — often printed boards (paper covered) had the title page on the front board and

publishers advertising on the rear board.

The common use of cloth following 1827 almost coincides with the development of the

"case binding", the binding was constructed separately and made ready to attach to the

book, attached primarily by the endpapers. Case bindings were developed between 1825

and 1830 and allowed for easier binding of large editions — also assisted in the

development of commercial binderies which specialized in binding for various publishers.

Prior to 1835 the gilt or other color titles on front boards and spines was stamped by

hand and one also sees printed paper labels used on many books between 1800 and 1835,

which was a less expensive way of adding the title to the binding. Embossing presses came

into use in approximately 1835, which automated the addition of title and any decorative

stamping on the binding. In about 1840 machine casing developed, which meant the case

no longer had to be attached to the book by hand. This latest development in binding meant

that thereafter virtually every publisher was binding their books in cloth. One could still

order special publisher's bindings in leather or special cloth, but standard cloth bindings

became the norm.

Very pictorial cloth bindings became common in the final quarter of the 19th century —

these bindings often appear to have a scene from the book "painted" directly on the cloth of

the front cover. Paper dust jackets saw common use beginning in the 20th century, although

there are examples of publishers dust jackets prior to 1890, they are uncommon in the 19th

century.

In summary we will provide two references, a few links and a brief chronology of major

changes in book binding in America:

The following chronology has approximate dates and is meant only as a rough guide:

1630's-1790 — most books have raised bands on spine

approx. 1775 — lack of raised bands on spines of some books

approx. 1785 — a few textbooks have coarse linen cloth bindings

approx. 1790 — frequent use of (paper-covered) boards

1800 - 1840 — very common use of printed (paper-covered) boards

1825 - 1830 — case binding begins

approx. 1827 — first serious use of cloth publishers binding

1835 — embossing presses in use

1840 — machine casing of books (cloth bindings become common)

1880 — very pictorial cloth bindings become common

1900 — dust jackets begin to be commonly used

There are many references available on the subject of bindings and we will list two we

believe are very helpful, one is a very good history of binding, the other is useful as a

pictorial guide to early American bindings.

Lehmann-Haupt, Hellmut et al. Bookbinding in America. Three Essays. Portland,

Maine. Southworth-Anthoensen Press, 1941.

(American Antiquarian Society). Early American Bookbindings from the Collection of

Michael Papantonio. Worcester, MA, American Antiquarian Society, 1985.

A Few interesting links relating to book bindings:

Center for the Book Arts offers exhibitions, courses, workshops, and seminars on the

traditional crafts of bookbinding

Bookbinding and The Conservation of Books. A Dictionary of Descriptive Terminology

an on-line dictionary or glossary of many book terms including those associated with

binding

Part 10 - Book illustrations - variety of & illustrators

When considering a book whether in a bookshop, catalogue or on-line, always check to

see if it is illustrated and determine the name of the illustrator. Even a later edition of a

book, particularly a "classic", may be very collectible and of significant monetary value as

well, when it has been illustrated by one of many avidly sought-after illustrators. In this

section of the essay we will provide you with brief details of some collectible book

illustrators and a list of other well-known illustrators. We will also introduce you to many

of the different types of book illustrations from woodcuts to copperplate engravings to

lithographs to albumen prints to halftones, etc.

The earliest form of book illustration to be used in America is the woodcut which is

made by cutting the flat surface of wood along the grain with a knife or knife-like cutting

tool. The cut is made on both sides of the line to be printed, leaving a ridge which becomes

a black line when printed. The first book illustrator in America was John Foster, a printer of

Boston, Massachusetts — according to Hamilton's "Early American Book Illustrators and

Wood Engravers" there is some confusion over exactly which of Foster's early illustrations

was the first American book illustration. Foster's 1670 portrait of Richard Mather occurs as

a frontispiece illustration in one copy of a biography — thus it may not have been issued as

an illustration — however Foster has several other woodcut illustrations in other books

during the 1670's, one of which must be the first American book illustration.

For the remainder of the 17th century and most of the 18th century, the woodcut and an

occasional small cut (illustration) done on type metal, are the only type of illustration in

American books. During the 1700's another form of illustration begins to appear — the

copperplate engraving — an engraving is accomplished with a tool called a burin or graver,

a sharp, pointed tool used to "plow" or gouge a line in the copper. One of America's earliest

and also best known copperplate engraver was the Boston silversmith and patriot, Paul

Revere. He engraved plates for colonial paper money, bookplates, almanac illustrations,

newspaper mastheads, book and magazine illustrations, prints, etc.

In the 1790's another form of engraving became popular for production of book

illustrations — the wood engraving. Alexander Anderson was one of America's earliest and

best known wood engraver. The graver or burin is used on the endgrain of a block of dense

wood such as boxwood to leave a line which does not print — a white line rather than a

black line such as the woodcut produces. If the engraver removes enough wood, he can

produce black lines rather than white lines — most wood engravings show the use of both

types of lines. The quality of a wood engraving, when done by a professional such as

Anderson, was far superior to a woodcut or even some copperplate engraving.

A process called lithography was developed in France in the late 18th century and was

revolutionary for book illustrations — this process was an efficient way of making many

prints of high quality from the same "plate". Lithography literally means "stone writing" —

the stone being a block of specially prepared, very smooth limestone on which the artist or

lithographer drew an image with an oil-based, greasy crayon. The stone was then flooded

with solution of gum arabic to "fix" the crayon grease and next the stone was moistened

with water and then oil-based ink was applied — the ink would adhere only to the crayon

lines and not to the wet stone between the lines — a paper would be applied to the stone

and a print or illustration would be "pulled" from the stone. America's first lithographer was

an artist named Bass Otis who successfully made a lithograph of a mill scene for an

American periodical in 1819. Lithographs soon supplanted wood engravings & copperplate

engravings as the most popular form of book illustration. America's best known

lithographers were Currier & Ives who produced mostly prints, some advertising cards &

sheet music, but few if any book illustrations.

In the early part of the 19th century, two other forms of engraving which used acid to

cut into the metal plate were used for some book illustrations, but the use was only

occasional. The aquatint was formed by spreading a thin layer of resin over a metal plate

and then the artist would engrave or "scratch" through the resin and the design on the resin

was transferred to the metal plate when acid was applied — the acid would "eat" through

the resin in the engraved areas and subsequently into the metal. This would produce a plate

from which softer, almost stipple-like prints could be pulled as opposed to the harshness of

copperplate engravings.

The other method using acid was etching which always has been used much more for

production of prints rather than book illustrations. Etching is accomplished in much the

same manner as aquatints with the substitution of a layer of wax for the resin. The acid

"eats" through the wax faster where the engraving has been done and then cuts into the

metal plate. In both etchings and aquatints the ink fills the channels cut into the metal and

the surplus ink is wiped from the plate and pressure is applied to the paper (often moistened

paper) during the printing process to press the paper into the channels containing the ink —

this general process is referred to as intaglio printing.

In the 1840's chromolithography was developed and colored book illustrations and

prints and all types of ephemera were produced in vast quantities — color and

reproductions of fine art were now readily available. Previously most color book

illustrations were produced by hand water-coloring of black and white illustrations — one

could purchase the same books either colored or plain. Now, with chromolithography, it

became easy for publishers to illustrate their books with full color plates. The

chromolithograph was produced in much the same manner as a black & white lithography,

but a series of stones was used for the application of many colors — a separate stone for

each color used — and perfect "registration" during the printing process was essential —

the paper must be placed at exactly the same registration point on each stone or subsequent

colors would be misapplied. Louis Prang, although not the earliest American

chromolithographer, developed the chromolithograph and the business of

chromolithography more than any other publisher/printer in this country. By the late 1850's

chromolithographs became common as book illustrations and they really flourished in the

1880's and 1890's. Today's modern offset printing methods are similar to lithography (both

are planographic techniques not relying on cutting or engraving a relief design), but use a

paper or thin metal plate instead of a stone.

The next revolutionary type of book illustration came from the invention of

photography. The earliest American book to have an actual photograph for an illustration is

"Homes of American Statesmen" published with a 1854 title page date and contains a

photograph of "The Hancock House" taken by Whipple of Boston. Although there were

quite a few books illustrated with actual photographs pasted-in, it was difficult to print huge

numbers of photo prints, thus these books tended to be issued in small editions of 100 to

500 copies. Books of the 19th century with actual photographs as illustrations tend to be

very collectible and sought-after. Most of the early photographs were either "salt-prints"

(early — mostly 1850's) or albumen prints (made glossy with an initial coating of an egg

white mixture).

In the mid to late 1860's two processes were invented which would allow thousands of

prints of a photograph to be made: the woodburytype and the heliotype. In this country the

woodburytype was extensively used by publishers from 1870 to 1900 — the process

produced prints of very high quality with very sharp detail and with a slight purplish tint.

The process involved applying a negative to a gelatinous layer from which thousands of

prints could be made. Books illustrated with heliotypes or woodburytypes occur in larger

editions than the salt-print or albumen-print books and although in demand are usually not

as rare.

Two inventions allowed the production of practically limit-less numbers of copies of a

photographic image. The photogravure is a method of making an intaglio metal plate from

a photographic image and then printing from the plate as many copies as desired. the

photogravure can provide very high quality images, but tends to be more expensive than the

other process which is a photomechanical process called a halftone. The halftone is formed

by breaking a photo image into a series of dots of different density allowing for the

different tones in the original photograph. A halftone when examined with a magnifying

glass looks like a mass of tiny dots.

The halftone, although invented in the 1850's, was not used extensively until the 20th

century and it became one of the most used methods of illustrating a book — and it allowed

for photo illustrations in newspapers and magazines.

The following is a brief chronology of the development of book illustrations providing

approximate decade of first use in America instead of an exact year:

1670's —woodcut

1700's — copperplate engraving

1790's — wood engraving

1820's — lithography

1830's — aquatints & etchings

1840's — chromolithography

1850's — salt print photographs

1860's — albumen print photographs

1860's — woodburytypes & heliotypes

1880's — photogravures

1900's — halftones in frequent use (invented in 1850's)

present— offset printing(a form of planographic printing similar to

lithography)

Part 11 - Investing in Antiquarian Books

In general, it is best to collect books because you enjoy books, and you like the

excitement and challenge of the hunt/search for specific titles, or you are after the

information contained within the books for research or personal enjoyment. To collect

books for purpose of investment, hoping for monetary gain, is not advisable.

If you are determined to collect books for investment purposes, you should be aware that

this type of investment is very much long term. Under most situations you should plan on

keeping your collection for a minimum of ten years before attempting to liquidate the

collection to convert to cash.

Rare and scarce books have increased in value at a reasonably high rate over the years,

but there are cases of deflation of book values and even what amounts to "crashes" in value

for certain books. Often when a previously "overlooked" sector becomes very collectible,

the prices inflate rapidly for a few years and if the demand does not keep up with the

supply, the prices fall almost as fast as they rose. Prices for photography-related books went

through a tremendous surge in value about a dozen to fifteen years ago and when interest

waned, the values receded - but in this case of photography books the demand and value

seem to have steadily recovered during the last decade -value recovery does not always

occur.

There are authors of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries who were very popular

and their first editions were in great demand,but now some of those same authors are not

exactly household names and their book values have not keep pace with inflation - and

perhaps, will never recover. There is no guarantee that you will be able to retire on the

capital gains from your book collection - collect books because you enjoy the hobby!

Source: http://www.trussel.com/books/lucas01.htm