Amateurs and collectors of books collect in their libraries many printed publications, each of which has its own history. In an effort to protect their wealth, bibliophiles and connoisseurs paste or affix book signs - bookplate. What it is, when and where it appeared, what happens and how this “graphic aphorism” is made, we will try to tell in this article.
What it is?
Translated from Latin into Russian, Ex libris means "from books." It is inextricably linked with the history of books and arose in medieval workshops - scriptories at monasteries, where the tomes corresponded. It was there that the so-called owner's inscriptions on books began to be made, beginning with the words “from the library” or “from the books”, after which the surname and name of the owner or the name of the monastery or library were indicated.
Ex-libris owes its modern and familiar look to the paper label glued to the inside of the book binding to book printing and German craftsmen. It happens very different - simple and decorative, black and white and color. The simplest example, familiar to each of us since childhood, is the bookplate of the library affixed to textbooks issued at the school. Aesthetically, he does not represent anything, but carries important information about the owner of the publication.
The book mark - the bookplate - did not remain unchanged, fashion trends of a particular era, personal preferences and tastes of the owners, and even the technical means of printing used, influenced its appearance.
As a rule, a personal book symbol is information to a greater or lesser extent encrypted about the owner: his surname and name, profession, worldview, interests. There are times when an ex-libris left is more valuable than the book itself in which it is located.
When did they appear?
Answering the question of bookplate - what it is, it is important to find out where and how this artistic phenomenon arose.
According to scientists, the oldest book sign is in the British Museum, and it belonged to the pharaoh Amenhotep IV and dates back to the XIV century BC. e. The desire to indicate ownership of such precious things as books is understandable. Only the most powerful and wealthy people could afford the luxury of having handwritten books and tried to designate the right of ownership in order to preserve it.
After the first printed books appeared in Germany, people needed bookplates by which they could identify the owner. The oldest recorded German book mark dates back to 1450, and the French Jean Berto La Tour Blanche to 1529.
One of the first English, Dutch and Italian bookplates appeared in 1579, 1597 and 1622, respectively.
Classification and types
Book signs that have developed over the centuries can be classified into the following two main types:
- font - indicating only the name and surname of the owner;
- artistic, executed in the form of a miniature drawing that briefly talks about the owner of the library.
Let's take a closer look at the art bookplate, what it is and what its types are. There are three of them:
- The coat of arms is characteristic of the XVI-XVII centuries, it depicted the emblem of the owner. It was created according to all the laws of heraldic art.
- Monogram included the artistically crafted initials of the owner. A similar bookplate (photo above) can be seen in the article.
- The plot is the most decorative and can consist of many elements, reflecting personal preferences, profession and hobbies of the owner.
What is being portrayed on them?
If earlier emblems and initials prevailed on book signs, then modern bookplates in most cases consist of two parts: art and text. And if in the inscription, according to tradition, the book belongs to one or another owner, then the image can be absolutely anything. When bookplates are being developed, artists are asked to display one aspect of the life or interests of the library owner. Such an image is necessarily symbolic, and it can be portrait or landscape, show elements of the decor or architecture of the library, grotesque or caricature. There are no restrictions, except for the imagination of the customer and the skill of the artist.
In Soviet times, ex-libris with the image of Lenin, plots and heroes of the civil and Great Patriotic Wars, labor exploits of workers and peasants, space exploration were popular.
How are they made?
Today, there are many techniques for obtaining book signs:
- typesetting;
- stamping;
- zincographic;
- lithography;
- silk screen printing;
- engravings on various materials.
Briefly consider the different methods that are used when making bookplate ex libris.
Woodcut
One of the oldest techniques is woodcut - wood engraving. Already in the VIII century BC. e. in the East, they received high-quality prints from processed wooden surfaces, and from the 14th century a similar technique began to be applied in Europe. This type of woodcut was called edged, it was performed on a longitudinal saw cut of soft wood, usually pear, chisel and knife. Due to the resistance of the wood fibers, the process was long and laborious. In the XVIII century, the English engraver Thomas Buick invented the end engraving method, performed on cross sections of solid wood with a special cutter. This type of engraving quickly gained popularity, as it allowed to obtain thin and clear lines, the necessary depth and smooth transitions between dark and light areas.
Copper engraving
This is one of the oldest ways to create prints in the 14th century in Italy. It is carried out by cutting the pattern with a special copper cutter and then filling the resulting grooves with paint. After that, the picture is printed under the press on wet, well-absorbing paper. This technique is quite complicated in execution, since nothing can be changed or corrected.
Etching
This is the most popular method for making bookplates: etching the pattern with acid on a zinc or copper plate. First, a special varnish composition based on wax and resinous substances is applied to a board coated with metal. When the varnish hardens, the artist applies a drawing with a special needle and exposes the metal. After the image is transferred, the plate is lowered into a container with nitric acid corroding the metal. On the surface cleared of acid and varnish, a pattern is obtained.
Modernity
If earlier ex-libris of artists was made by woodcut or etching, today most book signs are executed through an impression of a rubber cliche. Modern technical means allow engraving the smallest elements of the bookplate, which makes it possible to create complex artworks.
Book labels in Russia
Until the 18th century, manuscript books were distributed in Russia, and for their preservation, the owners simply carried out an “owner's inscription”, which indicated the name and surname. Thanks to the Russian first printer Ivan Fedorov, the first printed book sign appeared at the beginning of the 18th century. Initially, these were only emblems, but gradually began to appear plot drawings, equipped with a brief motto expressing the life position of the owner. During the reign of Peter I, secular literature was widely distributed and included in bookplate fashion. Drawings applied to print media become public and debatable, reflecting the social status of the owner.
In the 19th century, a layer of intelligentsia was actively formed in Russia, and the personal library ceased to be a symbol of privilege. Many enlightened people, scientists, and writers are gradually forming vast library collections. This contributed to the widespread bookplate, but led to its simplification. Instead of pompous family emblems or monograms, a usual frame appeared, made in a typographic way, into which the personal data of the owner and the permanent place of the book were entered - the number of the bookcase and shelf.
In the XX century, ex-libris becomes an almost independent genre of graphic art. This was facilitated by the fact that such outstanding artists as Alexander Benois, Lev Bakst, Georgy Narbut, Elena Lansere, Mikhail Dobuzhinsky and many others were engaged in this genre in Russia. It is also known that in 1901 the only bookplate of Vasnetsov was created, or rather, the woodcut “Izb. Ostroukhova "performed by the famous engraver of the time VV Mate according to the drawing, which the artist made with ink.
The modern history of the book sign
After the revolution of 1917 and the civil war, many graphic artists appeared, such as Nikolai Kupriyanov, Vladimir Favorsky, Alexey Kravchenko and other masters. The subject matter of the bookplate expanded significantly, and the book sign began to show individual personality traits and preferences of book owners.
The next period of the popularity of bookplate in our country was the 60-70s of the last century, when people became interested in collecting books. Despite the fact that creativity at that time was greatly limited by ideological frameworks, the artists created many interesting and unusual book signs.
Today, in the XXI century, interest in bookplate is becoming stronger. This is due, first of all, to the fact that more and more of our contemporaries strive to have a personal, own book sign, inherited, such as the bookplate, the photo of which is below.
Instead of a conclusion
Currently, book signs are used not only to preserve the integrity of the library, but also as collectibles. They can tell a lot about this or that era, owners and their destinies. Answering the question of bookplate - what is it, we can say that this is not only a modern genre of graphic art, but also a subject memory of bygone times and people.