The Crystal Palace and its contents.: An illustrated cyclopaedia of the great exhibition of 1851 (London, Nr. 1.1851(4.Okt.)-26/27.1852(27.März))

THE CRYSTAL PALAC1S AND ITS CONTENTS;

BOOKBINDING.

THE various specimens of bookbinding exhibited both, on tho British
and Foreign side, allbrded evidence that an animated struggle is going
ou fov pre-eminence in tho ornamentation of the outer parts of books; and
many ingenious and g.mdy devices are tho result. But upon tho whole,
wo cannot approw ..['!': L.i.to which lavishes so much upon the externals
of onr literature : Itia neither in harmony with tho calm spirit of intclli-

fetehed vanity iui
proves tho appear
ance of tho shelve
of the library. Pro
coed wo now to ;
Jew details.

deal of pretend
carried out-. Ii
printing and oh
unostentatious
decoi-.itious of t
has tho clasps
King?" Who c
the side—mind,
palette, dabs of
oriental stripe;

&,bout-this c

stos



e cannot say was particularly...,,
loticed manuscript copies of „i

■ executed, and there wore sot]!'

■ .'■■ ■ l.iuI wiio will admii'i.. -l!"
[Stalled "King Wiijiam's I;;.,);':'

■ - honour of tho gggt

Pouter's ]!■,!„,,"

coloi

Tritl

Remnant and Ed-
monds contributed
a good selection of
bindings,

Ow

t'pW

Vllil.ii'I

of the

Dliniei on colour, wim :: pinners pah;!;., „

not a conventional ornament, but tho verisimilitude <V!'

colour and nil! Then there was "I-U-^elas," bound';,''

but this is so [ucMyfWl well done, that we will u \

quarrel with. £

■ .bacon s works" j.

Ufa of lNap0lCor,

bound m tn-colour^

morocco, the edytj

diapered with beg

ascending and ;W.

de-lw reversed, "tr-

pifying the rise of

Kapoleon and the

fall of tho Hour-

|jg bons;" and then, in

ggH better taste, "Thoui-

m SOU'S Seasons," with

dassically ona-
ted calf.

here were also
c books with
ting on the side
sunk panels—

rkshop. Their
huge Bibles, with
the sunk panels, gilt
metal ornaments,
and profuse cm-
bellishment, cannot
please any one with
good taste. Wright,
of Noel Street, sent
, copy of "Sylves-

ke;

finely tooled; ai

"Das SieVieium;-

Lied," in white v.
mm, inlaid wilhim

Qdp

purple <M%Lg.

i earners, making a . _ ■_ '

tasteful pattern. Let / .'/jjjjB
us bete, once for ail,

protest against 'the ^i^t^z

absurdity of deco- ,U,-^->:

rating the edges of Vfigi§

books with pictures, .\\ .

Macomio and Co. \V>> \

contributed a large '"iCT~>^ ',''' " ■ iV-- Wm&aS

Bible, hound in mo- ' •' -'■' ,._ ■; \, '-' --"■'"■ * '" ""^N^

rocco, with a bronze | '" \ S£

ornament running l_t . - . .■■'' i~-~

work, auda "Bocca- w'!--'

cio," in white vellum, _.=---

inlaid with colour. '" "' ' 1J' B "'v'

Mr. Macomio seems

fond of tho raised panels—a style we cannot admire.-------Evans, of

Berwick Street, "the inventor "of English illuminated binding," as he
calls himself, filled a case with examples of this wonderful art, and
of the "Victorian" style of binding. Here we had a copy of ouo of tho
book covers in the British Museum, very well executed in coloured
leathers: the rest was mere "flmcy stationer's work." Batten, of Clap-
ham, had a ease containing sunue'viehlv-Loolcd bindings for tho "Song
of the Bell," " Moore's Melodies," and a " Sliakspoare;" but Gothic
church windows arc not Jit ornaments for the bookbinder's use, even
on Bibles and Prayer-books. Orr and Co. showed books published and
bound by them: some of them with good gilt ornaments.- Josiah
Westley had a cose chiefly filled with publishers' bindings, that aro
certainly a great advance in stylo on the productions of even two years
since. Binns and Goodwin, of Bath, showed one specimen elaborate
enough, but not to bo praised beyond I lie execution; mid then we come
to the largo show made by l.eighton, of Brewer Street. There was a great

to ornament a i-ind-
jngi But if Messrs.
Leighton's conceits
are somewhat alma:'.

is .meant to be
tunnel, e la bonus



>H ,i' andSbaksp.^v^::

'- „-' -4, an Eliwhevhaa :'"/

- /' _M ehitectural seivi'-

?■ \^W Surolv these p«e«-

C -." Htiescan haruiylnw

M^Sr patrons.

Mrs. Lewis had a

ease of well-l»»™

books—one on »

raldrv.appronn^),

enough nnmmeatea

with small coats w

.1 Addy showed some examples oi W

y (who unfortunately did not hi"*8"

:1 metal cover, executed bv Bnrtl ar>

^ „rt workmanship. Tho design ot *»»

■ pied from an old Venetian binding of the 17th eonW

tautiful. Leighton and Sou next exhibited some e!i'u;

udiue.s by Ltilce Limner; two Bibles verv creditably bona-.

rate cover for a small fiiblo in stamped gilt metal <■"'

and most honest-looking bindings in the show was ".^

Mr. Tarrant, a copy of Sir Thomas I ,riwreueo's 'Works

ed morocco, richly gilt, and witli a little inlaying o! oi "■

,rko, of Frith Street, showed a varietv of good, subsidy-;;

tho old " tree-marbled" calf, and regular library huinnv

and purple staminas were more curious than adnunw1-

Mr. Briddeu and Mr. Wiseman, from Cambridge, each exhibited £«£

I creditable ; and our Scotch friends sent us a l>lDly

arms at the comers ; Ciradal
morocco bindings of Mr. IT

exhibit!.

leathers,
volumes,
his gro(