Bindings image collection

Browse Folger Shakespeare Library Bindings Image Collection on Luna

This database provides access to high resolution images and descriptions of bindings from the rare book and manuscript collections of the Folger Shakespeare Library. Book bindings were chosen from the collection by Frank Mowery not only because of their decorative tooled elements but also for their physical features as functional objects and cultural artifacts. The photographs (mostly by Frank Mowery) are considered "reference" images, not archival, so unedited masters have not been kept.

Recording information about binding structure and decoration can reveal items where the same or similar tools may have been used at different times by different binders or binding workshops. Uncovering such similarities can also help link multiple bindings to individual owners, collectors, binders, or workshops—even in cases where a binder may be as yet unidentified—as well as to specific geographical regions or to specific time periods.

Users can show multiple images side-by-side, zoom in and out, view cataloging information when available, export thumbnails, and construct persistent URLs linking back to items or searches.

Related articles:

List of binding terms in the Bindings Image Collection

List of binders in the Bindings Image Collection

List of centuries in the Bindings Image Collection

List of countries in the Bindings Image Collection

List of bindings resources

Search fields for the Bindings Image Collection

Bibliography of materials related to the Bindings Image Collection

Things in books