The Voynich Ninja
Codicology - Printable Version

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Codicology - -JKP- - 08-04-2020

I usually avoid Pinterest (I prefer to go to original sites) and generally screen it out of my Web searches, but one of my searches included a hit on the Schoyen Collection (which always catches my eye) and that led me to this Pinterest page. For those interested in codicology and the VMS provenance, it has many interesting examples of medieval binding, including some that are limp vellum (like the VMS).


I've done some bookbinding. I have an antique book press and stitching frame. I haven't done a lot of it and it's a craft that takes years to master, but being a bibliophile, I wanted to learn something about it because it gives you a better appreciation for what you are seeing (or holding, if you are handling an antique book) and for how it was constructed, so I very much enjoyed this collection of images:

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RE: Codicology - -JKP- - 08-04-2020

Also, take a look about 2/3 of the way down, where someone used leather gloves to bind a collection of hymns. The hands are in a position of prayer. So appropriate to the content and so creative.


And, if you go down near the bottom, on the left, there is an example of a circular medieval bookmark (quite different from the bookmarks of today).


There are many more goodies. Too many to list. Very nice collection of images.

RE: Codicology - -JKP- - 08-04-2020

One more thing I wanted to point out....

There are some good examples of "carry books", bindings with an extra piece of cloth or leather extending beyond the edge of the binding that was knotted so it could be carried or slung on a belt.

We don't have the original VMS binding, but it was apparently leather-covered boards. Since the VMS is a small format, possibly designed to be portable, I wonder if it might have had one of these knotted handles (I don't know how often these handles were added to leather-and-board bindings):

   

I think these were called "girdle books" (I haven't studied codicology terms). The knotted pouch was sometimes separate from the binding, but a number of them were combination binding-and-handle.


Postscript: I just found some examples of girdle books:

[Image: 5515264.bmp?333x216]

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Another example:

[Image: image.jpg]

The Karlsruhe girdle book from Germany. WIMPFEL/CC BY-SA 4.0


A blog post on girdle books that includes info on Beinecke library girdle books:

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RE: Codicology - -JKP- - 09-11-2020

I don't want to clutter Wladimir's cutting/clipping thread with binding topics, so I'll post this here.

This is the part that I wish we could see (the pattern of stitching under the strip).

On the right is one example of stitching in another manuscript. Depending on the binder, this stitching varies in pattern, tightness, direction of the threads, and thickness of the cord:

   

RE: Codicology - Helmut Winkler - 10-11-2020

JKP,

from another manuscript is not a proper reference, would you mind to take the trouble?

RE: Codicology - ReneZ - 10-11-2020

The Beinecke picture only allows a top view, but it was looked at from all available angles in 2014, and again a few months ago.
The information in the Yale volume, and other details reflected at the web page I linked before, are likely to remain the best information we will have on this question.

One important point is that there is clear evidence of multiple interventions over the centuries.

RE: Codicology - -JKP- - 10-11-2020

(10-11-2020, 09:39 AM)Helmut Winkler Wrote: You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.JKP,

from another manuscript is not a proper reference, would you mind to take the trouble?

I was hoping to discuss this in a general way and find out if there were more photos of the VMS binding available somewhere (I realize there might not be).

I have been collecting examples of binding stitches for a while. Binding was something I learned before I knew about the VM. I have an antique binding press and also a traditional wooden stitching frame. But I don't have enough information about the VMS binding to present all my research. Without a better picture of the VMS binding, it is all speculation.

I'd rather not post the source of the above example until I can organize all my stitching pictures and present them properly in context with each other and with the VMS. I've been looking into this specific aspect of the VMS since 2008.

RE: Codicology - Aga Tentakulus - 11-11-2020

Since I myself have no idea about bookbinding, I simply wrote to a museum.
Let's wait for an answer.
Is it possible to determine whether a book was bound in Italy or Germany by means of the binding (e.g. 1450 book spines are free)? Or did they all use the same or similar techniques

Original question:
Lässt sich anhand der Bindung (z.B 1450 Buchrücken liegt frei ) bestimmen ob ein Buch in Italien oder Deutschland gebunden wurde ? Oder haben alle gleiche oder ähnliche Techniken verwendet

RE: Codicology - -JKP- - 11-11-2020

I don't know all the answers to this question, but I do know that there are a variety of stitching patterns and different binderies had patterns that they tended to use. I've learned four different stitching patterns and I know there are many more.

Also, the materials were partly based on what was available in a particular region (e.g., the cords are sometimes made from different materials and, of course, the boards are different woods, and the leathers from different animals).

The thickness of the cord varied also, and the spacing on the spine.

RE: Codicology - Aga Tentakulus - 11-11-2020

We will see what he answers. I have personally written to the leader. Specialising in old bindings. He is retired, but still gives courses.
Just wait and see.
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