- Mansfield Centre : Martino Publishing 2005
- 8vo.
- cloth
- vii, 132 pages.
- ISBN 1578984211 / Order Nr. 89332
- Price: $ 35.00

Catalogue for an exhibition or display of 116 significant bindings from the collection of the "Imperial-Royal [K.K.] Court Library" (now the National Library of Austria): bindings from the 6th to the 19th century (mostly, however European bindings of the 15th and 16th centuries) mostly in leather (morocco, calf, sheepskin) over boards (paper or wood) with covers decorated with metal pieces and/ or blind- or gilt-tooled or -stamped designs in various styles (mosaic, panelled, diapered, center- and cornerpieces in borders, pictorial, strapwork, oddities or mixed styles, etc.) sometimes with other colors. There is a certain emphasis on south German and Austrian bindings.
The purpose of the exhibition was not primarily aesthetic - though most of the bindings have a striking appearance - but to show the development of the structure and decoration of books. In this respect, one is particularly struck by the many correspondences between the ten medieval Middle Eastern bindings presented, and medieval and later European bindings. The accompanying folio-sized brochure contains an article on the history of bookbinding and decoration, followed by the catalogue of 116 bindings (plus several doublures), index and bibliography. Entries discuss decoration, decorative elements, and sometimes binding structure, with references to other bindings. Entries also indicate contents and provide information on provenance, binders, etc., along with references, as appropriate. The illustrations themselves are monochromatic photolithographic plates with chromolithographic highlighting of gilding and other coloration. The outer portfolio is split along the front hinge. With the Randeria bookplate.