Nature of the Book

Throughout history, books were handwritten, printed, bound, and decorated using a wide variety of materials from the natural world: leather coverings, mineral pigments, innovative recipes for inks, and paper made from plants. Influenced by the scarcity and abundance of commodities, global trade and economics, thrift, and fashion, books could vary greatly in terms of materials, construction, and purpose.  

Books produced in the West from 1450 to 1850 made extensive—and sometimes surprising—use of local animal, vegetable, and mineral products. Livestock provided leather and glue. The flax plant made paper, and oil for ink. Copper was used for both engraving and coloring illustrations.   

Early books could be purchased unbound. Owners hired bookbinders, who might use wood from local trees and leather from livestock, or more luxurious imported materials. Bindings could be practical and plain, or lavish works of art. Bindings can tell us a lot about a book’s purpose, an owner’s preferences, and an artisan’s skill. They also offer clues about where they were bound. 

Calfskin

Domesticated cattle raised for meat and milk offered a local source for bookbinding leather in Europe. Tanned calfskin offered a smooth durable surface, ideal for decoration. The marbled pattern on this calfskin is achieved with natural acids.

Pigskin

Pig farming provided a source for sturdy bookbinding leather in Germanic Europe. Pigskin was often tawed, not tanned, resulting in a whitish appearance.  

Although this book was printed in Rome, its wealthy Austrian owner, whose crest is inlaid in silver on the cover, likely had it bound close to home.

Goatskin

Goatskin was imported to Europe via Italian ports trading with North Africa. Called morocco leather, it was easily dyed bright colors and decorated with gold.  

Goatskin bindings with ornate gold tooling, long a tradition in Arabic book design, became increasingly popular by the 1700s. These traditions, still practiced today, would have lasting influence on the design of fine bindings throughout Europe.

Parchment

Parchment, made from sheep, calf, and goat skins that were soaked in a lime solution, then stretched on a frame and scraped smooth, was used to make book bindings. It was also the primary material for book pages in Europe through the 15th century. As printing became widespread, medieval manuscripts were retired, and their discarded skins were recycled into other uses, including book covers.   

European Hardwood

Hardwood trees such as beech and oak were once an abundant resource in Northern Europe, providing wood for ships, furniture, homes—and bookbindings.

This early 16th century book is bound in pigskin over wood boards. The decorative deer stamped on the pigskin links it to a bookbinder in southwest Germany.  

Bookbinding in Early America

Thin pieces of planed wood called scaleboard, or scabbard, were commonly used as book covers in early America, even as industries freed from British control flourished. A patchworked sheepskin covering provides further protection. 

Japanese Paper Covers

Japanese books were traditionally covered in paper. Poorer-quality paper was layered for strength, with an outer layer of colorfully dyed and decorated paper. These books' subtle pearlescent finish comes from the ground mineral muscovite—also known as mica—applied to the surface.

In first-century China, early papermakers created sheets of paper from pulped plant fibers. As the craft moved west, the materials used shifted to discarded linen and cotton rags. Paper is easily printed, folded, and sewn into books. Eventually it replaced parchment made from animal skins. By the 1850s, paper was being made from less expensive wood pulp in factories. 

Wood Block Printing

Printing from wood blocks originated in Asia but was commonly used to illustrate European books until the early 1800s.

Japanese printers used cherry wood for its fine and hard texture. Text and images were carved with chisels while barens pressed the paper onto the inked surface.  

Flax

The adaptable and versatile common flax plant (Linum usitatissimum) revolutionized papermaking. It thrives in most climates and was used for papermaking from the Middle East to Europe.

Fabriano Paper

As the printing press changed European book production in the late 1400s, paper mills grew to meet demands.

The Fabriano paper mill dates from the 13th century, when papermaking traditions reached Italy from the Arab world. Fabriano paper is recognized for its clarity, brightness, and flexibility—still visible in this 600-year-old book. 

In the American South, cotton production grew rapidly due to the invention of the cotton gin. The region's economic dependency on the labor of enslaved people grew with it. America was Britain's primary source for cotton until the Civil War.

Alternative Paper Sources   

Jacob Christian Schäffer sought alternatives to linen rag paper. He published his findings, which included 82 handmade paper samples from a variety of local natural sources. 

Wasp Nests

The paper wasp’s habits of chewing wood fiber to create pulp for nests would eventually inspire the development of wood pulp paper in the 1800s.

Wood Pulp

Parts of Matthias Koops’ experimental book were printed on wood-based paper, probably the first known instance of bleached wood pulp paper in English book production.  

Colorants used in inks, paints, and dyes came from a variety of natural sources, including clays, gems, plants, and insects. In books, colorful pigments were used to beautify, convey prestige or value, or accurately represent the world. Through research and chance, scientists have since discovered the hidden toxins in some pigments which craftsmen and artists unknowingly relied on. 

Arsenic

Scheele’s Green, an inexpensive dye produced in the 1700s and 1800s, used poisonous arsenic mixed with copper to create a brilliant green popularly used in textiles, wallpaper—and book edges. 

Red Lead

Red lead is found naturally as the mineral minium. Its orange-red hue was often recreated by roasting white lead, as seen in the robe. Lead’s toxic properties led to its decline in use.  

Ochres and Earth Pigments  

Yellow, red, and brown pigments could be made from iron-rich clays. For accuracy, Sowerby preferred the use of mercury and arsenic-based paints to color his depictions of ochre specimens. 

Mark Catesby's Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands (1729–1747)

Mark Catesby’s landmark work documenting the animals and plants he encountered on his North American travels in the early 1700s is a fascinating combination of luxury, frugality, and determination.  It is also the first fully illustrated and comprehensive study of the flora and fauna of the American colonies. 

Catesby financed the ambitious book himself, producing it over the course of 19 years at considerable cost. Soliciting subscribers in advance ensured a paying readership. He issued the book in 11 parts, each helping to fund the next. An estimated 200 copies were produced, each with unique traits. This remarkable publication is a work of art, a work of science, and a rich picture of the complexities of 18th century book production. Early books, such as Catesby's Natural History, were made from natural materials in the hands of skilled artisans. These traditional arts are still practiced today.   

Visit  Nature of the Book  in person A Smithsonian Libraries and Archives exhibition at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History Ground Floor  Location Map  10th St. and Constitution Ave NW Washington, DC 20560

Through September 3, 2024 Hours: 10:00 AM - 5:30 PM (summer hours may vary)