B-10. Introduction to the History of Bookbinding
Karen Limper-Herz
“I came, I saw, I feel empowered with bookbinding knowledge!” — 2018 student
Course Length: 30 hours
Course Week: 26–31 July 2026
Format: in person, University of Virginia in Charlottesville, VA
Fee: $1,495
Throughout history, books have been bound and decorated in a number of different ways, using different materials and techniques. Primarily intended to protect a text block against wear and tear, bookbindings are often also works of art in their own right. This course mainly focuses on the history of fine binding and looks at the principal structural and decorative techniques and materials used in the West roughly from the Middle Ages to the present day. It combines a chronological overview of major developments in the history of bookbinding with binding demonstrations, practical exercises and hands-on sessions working closely with the extensive teaching collection at RBS and fine bindings in the Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library at UVA. Aimed at special collections staff, cataloguers, historians, collectors, bookdealers, conservators, bookbinders, and others with an interest in bookbindings and their history, this course will be of interest to those wishing to develop their understanding of this important element of the history of the book and try their hand at some basic bookbinding and tooling.
Course History
Faculty
Karen Limper-Herz
Karen Limper-Herz is Head of Printed Heritage Collections at the British Library. Mentored by Mirjam Foot and Jan Storm van Leeuwen, she has worked with and studied bookbindings from different countries and periods for several decades. She is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and the Honorary Secretary and the Senior Vice-President of the Bibliographical Society (U.K.). She is a trustee of the Herzog August Bibliothek in Wolfenbüttel (Germany), a member of the organizing committee of the Arbeitskreis für die Erfassung, Erschließung und Erhaltung historischer Bucheinbände (AEB) in Berlin, and a member of the Wolfenbüttel Working Group for the History of Libraries, Books and Media. She publishes and speaks about the history of bookbinding and book collecting in the U.K. and abroad, and is a regular contributor to the “English & Foreign Bookbindings” series in The Book Collector.
Full Bio »