Lennox Fellowship: Book 5

Encyclopedia of Plants (1829) is part of the Bob Harvey Collection at Iowa State University. On receipt the upper board was completely detached from the case, the first and last sections were coming away from the textblock and an additional 13-page pamphlet that was previously sewn in was loose.

The textblock was completely removed from the case and the original spine linings removed. Next the loose sections were resewn into place and the 13-page pamphlet attached before the title page. New spine linings and a cloth flange were adhered and three rows of saddle stitching were sewn through the cloth for added strength.

To repair the case a Japanese paper lined piece of colored Moriki was pasted under the original green paper covering, attached to the back of the original spine covering and pasted under the the lower board paper. The repair was then turned in under the lifted pastedowns on the upper and lower boards. The paper covering along the edges of the board had worn away exposing the book board. In order to consolidate the board edges and protect the board a neutral brown kozo tissue was attached under the original decorative paper on the outside and attached under the original turnins.

Finally the textblock was reattached to the case by slotting the new stretch cotton flange under the lifted pastedowns. Japanese paper hinges were then attached to the inside joints for added staility. Finally a book shoe was constructed to provide textblock support for the book while sitting on a shelf. This type of enclosure was chosen to help prevent the large, heavy textblock from sagging and pulling away from the case.

Spine and upper board before conservation.

Spine and upper board after conservation.

Foredge and lower board before conservation.

Foredge and lower board after conservation.

View of inner joint repair.

Detached upper board, fly leaf and 13-page pamphlet.

View of attached fly leaf, board and 13-page pamphlet after conservation.

Book opening before conservation.

Book opening after conservation.

Book in custom made book shoe to provide textblock support.

View of book shoe and support piece.

Lennox Fellowship: Book 4

New England Book of Fruits (1847) is part of the Bob Harvey collection at Iowa State University. On receipt it was missing a little over 50% of the original spine. The board to textblock attachment was intact and held together with three strong cords on each board. Due to the strong board attachment it was decided that a new Moriki spine piece would be slotted in under the cover board cloth and wrapped around the spine. Japanese hinges were also attached at the inner joints for added strength and stability. In addition all four corners were consolidated and covered with Moriki.

Spine and upper board before conservation.

Spine and upper board after conservation.

Foredge and lower board before conservation.

Foredge and lower board after conservation.

Inside joint of upper board before conservation.

Inside joint of lower board after conservation.

Inside joint of lower board after conservation.

Inside joint of lower board after conservation.

Lennox Fellowship: Book 3

Mount Auburn Illustrate in highly finished line engraving from drawings (1847) is part of the Bob Harvey Collection at Iowa State University. On receipt the spine was worn and breaking at the joints, however the inner joints and board to textblock attachment was strong. The original spine piece was removed from the binding and a new tinted cave paper spine was attached under the lifted cover leather. This new spine provided a strong stable surface for the original spine piece to be attached as well as a natural hollow to give the book a more stable opening. In addition to the spine repair the four board corners were consolidated and covered with the same tinted cave paper.

Spine and upper board before conservation.

Spine and upper board after conservation.

Foredge and lower board before conservation.

Foredge and lower board after conservation.

View of upper board and joint damage before conservation.

View of upper board and joint after conservation.

Textblock opening before conservation.

Textblock opening after conservation.

Lennox Fellowship: Book 2

Philosophical enquiry into the origin of our ideas of the sublime and beautiful (1770) is a full leather tight back binding. On receipt the upper board was completely detached and the lower board joint was cracked and worn. The upper board was reattached using tinted solvent set Japanese tissue on the outside joint and a colored Kozo Japanese paper hinge on the inside joint. The lower board received the same treatment to help add stability to the failing joint. The worn corners on the upper and lower boards were consolidated and covered with the same tinted Japanese paper as the outside joint repair. In addition to the joint repairs the title page and first page of the textblock were repaired using colored Kozo paper. Finally the book was given a chemise and girdle enclosure to prevent wear on the repaired book.

Detached upper board before conservation.

Spine and upper board before conservation.

Spine and upper board after conservation.

Spine and lower board before conservation.

Spine and lower board after conservation.

Upper board joint before conservation.

Upper board joint after conservation.

Title page repair and Japanese paper joint.

Completed work in chemise and girdle enclosure.

Lennox Fellowship: Book 1

Every Man His Own Gardner (1827) is a medium sized quarter leather binding. On receipt the leather joints were cracked and broken in several places. The joints on the inside of the boards were also broken, however the original sewing cords were still holding the boards to the textblock. To create a stronger joint the spine was completely removed from the binding. Tinted kozo paper was then used to create two hinges, one at the front and another at the back with paper left at the head and tail to turn in. The spine piece was then reattached to the boards and turned in to complete the case. Interior Japanese paper hinges were also added for added strength.

In addition to the joint damage several areas of the marbled paper covering were abraded, torn, or missing. The missing areas were filled in using a soft western handmade paper that was later treated with SC6000. Finally the book was given a chemise and girdle enclosure.

Spine and upper board before conservation.

Spine and upper board after conservation.

Foredge and lower board before conservation.

Foredge and lower board after conservation.

Textblock opening before conservation.

Textblock opening after conservation.

Upper board endpaper before conservation.

Upper board endpaper after conservation.

Lower board endpaper before conservation. Last page is stuck to fly leave.

Lower board endpaper after conservation with last page released and reattached to textblock.

Treatment completed in chimese.

Treatment completed in chimese and girdle enclosure.

Derry & Raphoe Diocesan Library Workplacement: 2010

Primasii is a medium sized full leather tightback binding with laced on boards. On receipt the leather was no longer attached to the spine or the boards, with the turnins acting as the only point of attachment. In addition the leather was brittle and shrunk causing it to no longer fit properly around the textblock. To resolve this the case was cut into three pieces and given two Japanese paper repairs at the joint to fit around the textblock again. The boards had also become delaminated and were pasted back together. The sewing was holding strong, however the tanned leather supports had become brittle and broken throughout. To solve this problem the original supports were removed leaving the sewing intact. New supports were then threaded through the sewing and used to lace the boards back on the textblock.

Front board before conservation.

Front cover after leather was reattached to boards and joint repaired with tinted Japanese tissue.

Back cover before conservation.

Back cover after leather was reattached to boards and joint repaired with tinted Japanese tissue.

Front board and title page before conservation.

Front cover with new endpaper and linen flange to protect board and vellum.

Back board and endpaper before conservation.

View of back cover with new linen lacing and linen flange to protect vellum endpaper and inside of board.

Head before conservation.

View of head after original headband was tacked back into place using a back bead sewn with tinted linen threads.

Tail before conservation.

View of tail after original headband was tacked back into place using a back bead sewn with tinted linen threads.

Spine before conservation.

Spine after conservation treatment. The case was cut into 3 pieces to fit around the textblock, this was due to the case shrinking while detached. Two strips of tinted Japanese paper were used to reattach the three pieces together with the original leather turn-ins wrapping around the repair pieces.