Browse Items (259 total)

This binding is a geometric juxtaposition of blue and red morocco leathers with a centerpiece, also sporting tooled decoration in gilt, in white parchment. The binding is signed by G. Samucewicz, and although one sees mention of the binder in various…

This speckled calf binding is created using a technique of depositing fine drops of acid on the binding’s leather to achieve the visual effect. A late 19th or early 20th century rebinding, this binding is executed in the “Cambridge” style. Very…

This collection of poetry from Québec poet, musician and actor Michel Garneau, is printed on loose leaves of paper and illustrated by Maureen Maxwell. All is housed in a leather “case” of a mosaic design, executed by artist Lise Rodrigue. This is…

This exquisite binding in red morocco is a modern binding, probably dating to 350-400 years after the book was initially printed. Tooled and stamped in gilt, with elaborately gilded edges, this was a binding executed for someone with a love of luxury…

Bringing to life the adage of “waste not, want not”, this book’s binding is made of parchment that originally was someone’s correspondence. With paper and leather being expensive commodities due to the ever-increasing amount of titles being published…

Leathers and parchments could be dyed so as to add colour to their external covers; they could also be painted. This third edition of the works of Olympia Morata, humanist, poet and linguist, of Italian origin, is an example of a parchment that has…

In the 20th century, in addition to the pasted-in ex-libris bookplate, we find many different styles and formats of ex-libris indications. The stamped ex-libris turns out to be not only a less onerous form but also one that is much more practical. We…

Published in Paris, this work does not have an ex-libris per se, but it does have a note written on the inner cover which might offer some insight into the person that owned it. The inscription reads “Il y a deux éditions postérieures l’une de…

Like their modern cousins still available today, almanacs contained information necessary for the carrying out of many aspects of everyday life. Their biggest asset was their portability. The item held by Archives and Special Collections is in…

The front flyleaf has an elaborate inscription that is quite illegible due to its flamboyant handwriting. We do see the initial sentence “Souvenir de Pierre Grospin, dit le vieux grognard à M. Ballard.” These novellas parodying the bacchanalian seem…