Went to the big library downtown and saw a display of old repair jobs

They had a glass case with maybe 15 books from the 1800s. All had been fixed up. Some spines were rebacked with new leather. A few had new endpapers. The old repairs were neat, but you could tell they were done a long time ago. The thread was thick and the glue was dark. Made me think about how we do things now. We have better tools and cleaner materials. But the goal is still the same. Keep the story in the pages safe. Anyone else seen old work that made you stop and look?

3 comments

3 Comments

tessa_murray3d ago

Honestly, that part about "better tools and cleaner materials" got me. I feel like the old work had more heart. Those thick threads and dark glue show someone really took their time. It wasn't about making it look perfect and new again. It was about a person saving a specific book with what they had. A lot of modern repair feels kind of sterile to me, like it removes that history.

gracec162d ago

My 1912 encyclopedia has three different repair styles across its life.

jackson.faith2d ago

You're right @tessa_murray, that old glue tells a story. Modern methods can erase the proof a book was loved enough to be fixed before. Sometimes perfect is the enemy of good.

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