by Emily Tipps
Knowledge of book history is essential to the investigation of a single binding; a scholar can bring what she knows of a period or place to her study of a specific book. However, by necessity, history generalizes, whereas hand-bound books are as unique (and indeed idiosyncratic) as their binders. Therefore, when examining a book it is often the historical discrepancies—the oddities—that can serve as forensic keys to their histories. As books and binders are individuals, so too are those who examine them.