This fascinating blog post about the history of vellum and parchment is written by Richard Norman, an experienced British bookbinder now living in France, where he runs Eden Wookshops with his wife and fellow bookbinder, Margaret, specializing in Family Bibles and liturgical books. The article originally appeared on www.edenworkshops.com, and is reprinted below with the author's permission. --Editor According to the Roman Varro and Pliny's Natural History, vellum and parchment were invented under the patronage of Eumenes of Pergamum, as a substitute for papyrus, which was temporarily not being exported from Alexandria, its only source. Herodotus mentions writing on skins as common in his time, the 5th century BC; and in his Histories (v.58) he states that the Ionians of Asia Minor had been accustomed to give the name of skins (diphtherai) to books; this word was adapted by Hellenized Jews to describe scrolls. Parchment (pergamenum in Latin), however, derives its name from Pergamon, the city where it was perfected (via the French parchemin). In the 2nd century B.C. a great library was set up in Pergamon that rivalled the famous Library of Alexandria. As prices rose for papyrus and the reed used for making it was over-harvested towards local extinction in the two nomes of the Nile delta that produced it, Pergamon adapted by increasing use of vellum and parchment. Writing on prepared animal skins had a long history, however. Some Egyptian Fourth Dynasty texts were written on vel... [more The History Of Vellum And Parchment]

I would like to record any three-deckers with surviving dust-jackets. I have one, and have heard of another, but there probably aren't many more than that. Three-Decker under Canvas. Three-Decker under Paper. A Thomas Hardy three-decker of unknown title is reported to retain remnants of jackets printed with rules and lettering. Does anyone know what title this is, and where it is today? My own three-decker is J. M. Barrie's The Little Minister (London, Paris and Melbourne: Cassell & Co., 1891) in the publisher's fine-ribbed cloth with plain white wove tissue jackets. This copy, described as the finest example extant, sold for $1,100 in 1938, quite a sum during the Great Depression. The plain jackets are definitely original: they exactly match the plain white tissue jacket on another Cassell novel, Robert Louis Stevenson's and Lloyd Osbourne's The Wrecker (1892), whose jacket was even cut short in the same way as the Barrie jackets, a fairly common occurrence then. And on both titles, the jackets have one flap wider than the other, again a common occurrence, at least on British jackets. And another Stevenson novel published by Cassell, Catriona (1893), also has the same white jacket. The uniform paper, cut and fold of all these jackets and the flawless condition of the bindings on three Cassell novels from 1891-92-93 is ample proof that the plain jackets are original. Someone, perhaps a bindery or bookstore clerk, put graphite on The Wrecker jacket to make the title stand out;... [more Jacketed Three-Deckers]

From February 10–12, 2023, thousands of book lovers, rare-book dealers, and scholars will converge at the Pasadena Convention Center for the 55th California International Antiquarian Book Fair. Recognized as one of the world's largest and most pre-eminent exhibitions of antiquarian books, the California Book Fair gives visitors a chance to see, learn about and purchase the finest in rare and valuable books, manuscripts, modern first editions, children's books, ephemera, maps, autographs and more. The California Book Fair's 2023 edition promises an eclectic mix of special collection exhibits highlighting a noteworthy range of topics, including: The Game's Afoot: Collecting Sherlock Holmes – featuring materials from Occidental College's special collection of perennial favorite Sherlock Holmes; Helen Brown: Bibliophile and Champion of West Coast Cuisine – highlighting the renowned food writer's inscribed materials and correspondence with fellow iconic food writer, M.F.K. Fisher; What the Hell is Ukulele Literature? – with books and ephemera related to the beloved instrument, currently experiencing a boom in popularity; "Pushing the Envelope: Southern California Women Bookmakers – Posing the question, “What is bookness?” this exhibit, curated by renowned bookmaking and artist book expert Kitty Maryatt, features books made by Southern California women letterpress printers, calligraphers, and binders; The Young Book Collector competition winner's collection. Featuring... [more 2023 California Book Fair]

We asked the winners of the 2022 National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest about their collections, and learned about the importance of physical media during the Covid pandemic! First Prize Daria Rose Evdokimova (Harvard University): "Ardis Publishers and the Immigrant Identity." ABAA: Could you give us a brief description of your collection? DRE: My collection focuses on the publishing house Ardis Publishers, the first (and only) US-based publishing house which focused on Russian and Soviet literature. More specifically the majority of my collection consists of Ardis editions of works by Vladimir Nabokov and Joseph Brodsky. Both of these authors were born in Saint Petersburg and eventually immigrated to the US for political reasons. As someone who was exiled from Russia for political reasons as well, I feel a very personal connection to both of these authors. Like them I am also using the acts of reading and writing as attempts to construct a new life in the US. Books printed by Ardis Publishers are a fundamental part of that journey. Frequently immigrants feel that the narratives of their lives become somewhat disjoined, there's a before and after, two islands separated by different languages and cultures. Ardis books were published in the US, by a wife and husband team of American academics, and provided the only outlet for Soviet writers who couldn't be published at home. So for me these books provide the necessary bridge that helps connect two parts of my identity – ... [more Meet the 2022 NCBCC Winners]

After sixty-two years in the field of historical letters and manuscripts, Kenneth W. Rendell still feels just as excited as he was when, many years ago, a friend showed him a handwritten letter of George Washington. He couldn't believe it then and still feels "overwhelmed and honored" to collect what he regards as "pieces of human history." This past year, Rendell established two endowed annual lecture series, the first at the Rare Book School at the University of Virginia, focusing on the excitement of collecting original manuscripts and rare books, and the second at The Grolier Club in New York City, on the importance of handwriting in understanding history. The Grolier Club asked Rendell to deliver the inaugural lecture in this series in October 2022, an illustrated talk about pieces in his personal collection and why he considers them interesting and important: "The Power and Importance of Handwriting." This lecture can be viewed at https://vimeo.com/762624186 Kenneth W. Rendell Lecture on the Importance of Historical Letters and Documents from The Grolier Club on Vimeo. [more Kenneth Rendell Endows Two Lecture Series]

The Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair (BIABF) is making its much-anticipated return to the Hynes Convention Center in Boston's Back Bay from November 11-13, 2022. The 44th Boston Book Fair is the annual fall gathering for book lovers and collectors, featuring the top selection of items available on the international literary market, sanctioned by the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America (ABAA) and the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB). An alluring treasure trove awaits seasoned collectors and first-time attendees. More than 100 exhibitors, from 9 different countries–Canada, Denmark, France, Georgia, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, the UK, and the US–will showcase the finest in rare and valuable books, photography, illuminated manuscripts, autographs, maps, historic documents, maps, fine bindings, original illustrations, ephemera, fine and decorative prints, and much more. A full list of exhibitors can be found at bostonbookfair.com/exhibitors... Highlights of items available at this year's fair include rare first editions of Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre and James Joyce's Finnegans Wake; a gorgeous lithograph of Alphonse Mucha's Salome; the first edition of the health and civil rights landmark Our Bodies, Ourselves; a copy of the Highgrove Florilegium featuring botanical paintings of plants and trees growing at Highgrove, the Gloucestershire garden of King Charles III, signed by the newly crowned King of England; Inaugural addresses of... [more Boston Book Fair 2022]

An ABAA Member reports the following item as lost in transit (FedEx) from Chevy Chase, MD to Chicago. The buyer received an empty box upon delivery. Bressani, Francesco Giuseppe (1612-1672) Breve Relatione d'Alcune Missioni de' PP. della Compagnia di Giesù nella Nuova Francia. Macerata: Heirs of Agostino Grisei, 1653. Quarto: 21.5 x 15.5 cm. , 8 pp., 9-10 ll., 11-127, pp. Collation: π2 A4 B4 (±B1.2) C-Q4 FIRST EDITION. Bound in 17th c. limp sheepskin parchment. With a large woodcut Jesuit device on the title page, woodcut initial, and a factotum built up from fleurons. There is a neatly written contemporary inscription of a Roman Jesuit library on the title page; some leaves foxed or lightly browned; there is a minor ink stain on two leaves. In all, a nice, genuine copy with generous margins. A full description of the item can be found here. If you know the whereabouts of the item or if it is offered for sale, please contact ABAA HQ (hq@abaa.org) or Paul M. Dowling, Liber Antiquus (paul@liberantiquus.com). [more Missing in Transit to Chicago]

In early 2022, the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America's Diversity Initiative Committee announced a new paid summer internship program, co-sponsored by AbeBooks, intended to provide an alternative route to success in the antiquarian-book business, as part of its larger mission to promoted diversity, equality and inclusion in the rare-book business. Military veteran Alba Melgar-C'De Baca, a graduate student at the University of North Texas, was selected for the 10-week program, and interned at ABAA-member Type Punch Matrix over the summer of 2022. Melgar-C'De Baca spoke with Richard Davis at the Behind the Bookshelves podcast about her internship, and you can listen to the interview here... When asked what she'd tell other students considering a similar internship in the future, Melgar-C'De Baca said: “Don't hesitate to apply, there are so many parallels between working with rare books and librarianship…. It's a fascinating field with really great growth and learning opportunities.” Alba Melgar-C'De Baca Alba is a retired Army officer with a background in emergency response, training, operations and logistics. She has advanced degrees in Quality Systems Management and an undergraduate degree in Biology. Her ABAA, AbeBooks internship with Type Punch Matrix is based on her current educational efforts towards and MS-LS in Archival Studies and Imaging Technology as well as her future endeavors toward book sales. [more ABAA Diversity Internship]

One phrase you might hear at a rare-book fair is mapbacks. No, that's not some sort of tattoo favored by rare map dealers; a "mapback" is the informal name for a series of pulp paperback books published by Dell between 1943 and 1950. Initially, the back cover of these books featured bland art, but starting with the fifth book in the series, Four Frightened Women by George Harmon Coxe, Dell added an illustration showing the locale where the book's events took place. (Note: the previous book in the series, The American Gun Mystery by Ellery Queen, was later reprinted with a map on the back cover, but it was the fifth book in the series that was the first to feature a map.) The “maps” were not all conventional maps by any means, with cut-away illustrations of buildings being a frequent option the various artists used when the action was largely confined to one house or building. Dell paperbacks were distinguished airbrushed art and a distinctive Keyhole collophon with an eye peering through, a nod to the lurid mysteries they mainly published in the paperback line — although they soon began to add thrillers, romance, western titles, even historical novels and nonfiction as the series grew in popularity. The keyhole logo soon accreted a number of variations to denote genre, and (according to Piet Schreuders in The Book of Paperbacks) in 1949 it ceased to be used on the rear of mapbacks). Curtains for the Copper by Thomas Polsky New York: Dell Publishing Company. First editio... [more Collecting Dell Mapbacks]

UPDATE: The following item has been recovered. The two below are still missing after being placed in a UPS deposit box at The Arsenal in Philadelphia. The First American Edition Melville, Herman. Moby-Dick: or the whale. New York, Harper & Brothers/ London, Richard Bentley, 1851. 8vo (19.3 cm). xxiii, , 654, pp., ff. BAL 13664; Wright, II, 1701; Tanselle 2; Grolier, American, 60. Publisher's purple/brown cloth with company's device stamped in center both covers; orange endpapers; ads at rear. Foxing, top of spine pulled; board edges show wear; spine sunned. In a quarter green Morocco open-back slipcase with a chemise. Spine of slipcase sunned as are part of the sides. The following significant items went missing after being placed in a UPS deposit box at The Arsenal in Philadelphia. The Inquisition & Father Hidalgo's "Manifiesto" Mexico. Inquisition. Broadside, begins: Sabed: que ha llegado á nuestras manos un proclama del rebelde Cura de Dolores que se titula: 'Manifiesto, que el Señor Don Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla::::,, haze al Pueblo." Mexico: no publisher/printer, 26 January 1811. Folio (43.4 cm; 17.125"). p. Approximately two months prior to Father Hidalgo's capture by the Royal Forces, the Holy Office issued this decree condemning a publication of the Father of Mexican Independence as seditious, Lutheran, and anti-Catholic. Other writings circulating in manuscript are also condemned: One beginning, "Hemos llegado a la epoca" and ending, "De una Patriota de Lagos" and ... [more UPDATE: Melville Recovered; Missing in Transit from Philadelphia: Father Hidalgo & Lettsom]