Green's Books

Conservation of a Sikh Guru Granth Sahib Ji

In July 2023 we were visited by a family looking to conserve their copy of a Guru Granth Sahib Ji which had been in their family since 1984. The Guru Granth Sahib contains the central teachings of Sikhism as laid out by the ten Gurus. This text is revered as the eleventh Guru and is

Continue Reading

Tying-up boards

Back in January 2022, Lena and I decided to ease into the new year with a trip to see our friend Trevor Lloyd MBE in Ludlow. We were welcomed into Trevor’s bindery and our questions were all answered with openness and patience. Insightful and enjoyable as our trip was, my main reason for visiting was

Continue Reading

A canvas binding; or, a canvas covered school book

The introduction of the first mass produced, embossed, starched fabric for covering books is generally attributed to Archibald Leighton in the 1820s. The development of book-cloth was a catalyst for the movement away from in-board binding towards a case bound structure and the term ‘cloth binding’ has now become almost synonymous with case binding. However,

Continue Reading

What’s on the page? Signatures, catchwords, and press figures.

Have you looked at books of the hand-press period (circa 1450-1800) and wondered what the letters and numbers are at the foot of the page? Well, wonder no more…  To decipher these marks, we must first understand how the page was created. Whilst we might now think of books as collections of single sheets, early

Continue Reading
An early 19th century stationery binding

Stationery binding quires: Do they differ from printed sections?

The following is an amended excerpt from an unpublished Paper No hum-drum memorandum: Conservation of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust’s first Visitor’s Book, that Arthur gave for the 2019 Archives & Records Association (ARA) Conference in Leeds. The presentation described the conservation of an early 19th century stationery binding, looking at the various aspects of documentation,

Continue Reading

N. J. Hill & Co.

I recently acquired a lovely old pair of bookbinding shears that had “N. J. HILL” stamped into the metal. Just a short while after that, a finishing stove arrived at the studio which was marked with “HILL & Co LONDON”. Our new tools peaked our interest, so we did some research to find out what

Continue Reading

Conservation Newsletter, No. 8, Winter/Spring 2022

We’ve published our latest Conservation No. 8, Winter & Spring 2022.  

Continue Reading

Conservation Newsletter, No. 7, Autumn 2021

We’ve published our latest Conservation Newsletter No. 7, Autumn 2021.

Continue Reading

“Getting Organised” – Starting my new job at Green’s Books

Having recently completed a Master’s degree in Book Conservation at West Dean College, I was incredibly pleased to be offered work at Green’s Books straight away. Originally from Austria, I studied History and Philosophy at University College, Dublin before moving to the UK. During my training, I undertook placements at The National Archives, the Staatsbibliothek

Continue Reading

Conservation Newsletter, No. 6, Summer 2021

We’ve published our latest Conservation Newsletter – No. 6, Summer 2021.  

Continue Reading

Site by The Web Project