Cover Decoration - Hand Tooling

Cover to Cover: Exposing the Bookbinder's Ancient Craft

One of the oldest forms of cover decoration, ‘tooling’ involved the use of metal devices known as finishing tools.  Usually heated, these were impressed into the leather surface to create a pattern or design.  Unlike blocking, which required the use of a press, tooling was performed by hand.

The tools were given different names (pallets, fillets, gouges and rolls), according to their purpose, but common to each was a die-sunk design in their metal (usually brass) face or circumference.  Often, they were used in combination to ‘build up’ a more elaborate design; sometimes they were just single dots or lines.  When they were applied to slightly moistened leather, the pattern displayed as a depression in its surface.  This practice was known as ‘blind tooling’.  ‘Gold-tooling’, on the other hand, occurred when the heated tool was applied to the leather through gold leaf.

Although blind-tooling was thought to be in use as early as the 8th century, very little was known about European bindings decorated in this manner until the 12th and early 13th centuries.  A few English bindings from around this time, described as ‘Romanesque’, were in fact blind-tooled examples; most of them exhibited a design of successive rectangular borders around a central decoration.  Interestingly, they had different patterns on their front and back covers, whereas the few examples that exist from the late 13th and mid-14th centuries display the same pattern on both boards.  By the 15th century, and well into the 16th, it was not uncommon to see the finishing tools used in a manner that formed a diaper.  Each tool was placed within a diamond-shaped compartment and the whole set within a framework of lines.  Many small tools were also placed end-to-end to create decorative strips, a process simplified by the introduction of the ‘roll’ in c1500.

Tooling was one of the most important developments to take place in the history of bookbinding.  Binder’s everywhere embraced the practice, some began to use blind tooling in conjunction with gold.  Where, exactly, this technique of impressing heated tools through gold originated was widely debated though.  Some evidence pointed to Morocco, where gold tooling may have been practiced since the 13th century; others suggested it had been introduced into Italy from Persia soon after 1400.  Contributing to the uncertainty, was the challenge of differentiating between gold that had been tooled with hot metal and gold that had been painted in liquid form into the impressions.  In England, at least, true gold-tooled bindings were not produced in any quantity until the 1530s.

Though some binders experimented with gold-tooling, the practice was not universally adopted.  In fact, blind-tooled designs constituted the majority until the 1600s, and any gilt examples surviving from this era were often described as rather crudely executed with roughly-cut tools.  Throughout the 18th century, however, finishing techniques improved.  Rarely was a worn tool used; designs just looked lighter and sharper.  Issues surrounding the accurate mitring of filleted or palleted panels were also addressed.  Where gold-tooled lines previously overran the corners or where joins had been disguised with rosettes, these were now corrected through the use of thin paper.  That is, the cover designs were first measured out and drawn onto paper.  This was then placed in position on the leather cover, and heated tools were pressed through the design.  The paper was removed to reveal the blind impressions which were subsequently prepared and tooled in gold.

The second half of the 19th century saw the development of numerous time-saving techniques, the result of increasing competition amongst fine-binding houses and a price war, undoubtedly spurred on by the bookselling trade.  A number of those practices occurred during the finishing process.  Large tools were being cut for works by particular authors, which enabled spine compartments to be ornately stamped in a single impression.

More on Finishing Tools...

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Blind Tooling

Several different methods can be employed for making blind impressions.  Leather which has been slightly moistened can be impressed with a cold tool; this practice does not noticeably discolour the leather.  Alternatively, a heated tool can be applied to dampened leather, the tool rocked slightly from front to back and side to side to produce a particularly sharp impression.  In this process the leather is darkened considerably, however, this does tend to fade a little after a few hours.

Pictured to the right is a fine, early example of blind-tooled calfskin, showcasing the binder's skill with a variety of finishing tools.  Pallets, rolls and gouges have been used to create an identical pattern on both the front and back covers.  Look closely at the joint between the front board and the spine.  Here, a new leather lining can be seen, indicating that the book has been rebacked at some stage.  Fortunately, the binder or conservator kept the old cover and reattached it to the new leather and the existing boards.

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Gold Tooling

Once the cover pattern was worked in blind, either through a paper pattern or directly onto the leather with finishing tools, the leather was prepared for gold tooling.  To prevent the gilding size or glaire from being absorbed into the leather (calfskin was particularly porous), it was first washed with a filler of thin paste and water, though some binders preferred to use sulphuric acid-free vinegar.  The next step involved filling the blind impressions with gilding size; traditionally this was glaire, made from egg whites.  It was applied with a fine brush and allowed to dry.  If a bright, glossy effect was not achieved, a second coat was required to ensure the gold would take.

Handling gold leaf was challenging and was best performed in a room with minimal draught, so as to avoid its flying away or crumbling over.  A sheet was lifted from the book of gold using a gold knife and gently placed on the gold cushion, a padded board covered with sueded leather.  Pieces were then cut to size with a careful sawing motion.  A small amount of Vaseline or coconut oil was placed on the back of the binder’s hand and a pad of cotton wool was lightly drawn over it.  A minute amount of this grease was rubbed over the area to be tooled.  A second piece of cotton wool was flattened, folded and lightly dabbed on the binder’s forehead or hair, making it just greasy enough to pick up the gold from the cushion and to press it into the blind-tooled impressions.  A light breath on the area often helped the gold to adhere more readily.  In the event that the gold leaf split, a second application to the area was required.  Once the tooling was complete, any surplus gold was removed with a gilder’s mop.

Also on display in this cabinet were the following hand tooled covers:

Lee Hayes
May 2018