Weak spine. Sunburn. Bumped head. Maladies of aging that aren’t that surprising after more than one-hundred years on this old Earth. I hope I hold up as well as these old books. At the very least, I hope my appendages don’t fall off from overuse, like the leather book covers did on this two volume set.
Back when these volumes were printed, paper was a lot sturdier. In general, books printed and bound before the mid-nineteenth century hold up well over time. Like everything else, it depends on how they are cared for during their life on the shelf.
If you never change the oil in the car, the engine could fail eventually, if pressed hard enough. A lot of shiny cars turn rusty on the coasts. Sun does its damage over time, too. Particularly when it comes to books parked near a window.
It might have just been constant opening and closing that ruined the leather-bound boards on this 1860 set. A well-read book of that time would be more likely to lose only the front cover. Sun and humidity will ruin even fine leather over the decades, and I’m guessing that’s what happened to Lord McCauley’s Miscellaneous Writings, published by Spottiswood and Company of London.
When the books arrived, the back cover of volume two was missing in action. The three others were completely detached.
There are ways to repair loose boards, but the process is much more involved and – to tell the truth – many antique books don’t warrant the time and effort required to put them to rights. Like old car restoration, some classics will benefit from a frame-off, ground-up repair. Others just need the dents pounded out and spray painted.
I’m hoping the work on these two volumes will increase their value, and it’s probable, since I picked them up on the cheap due to their condition. Since one board was gone, reattaching the covers wasn’t an option. The back board of volume two came courtesy of an old Clive Cussler novel that had seen better days. Sort of like the organ donor program. It was sky-blue and hardly suited for an antique, but that’s all right. It’s well hidden after the repair.
The Cussler-cover is now underneath a new leather binding at the spine, and an 1860s-design-appropriate piece of cloth. Rather than lose the nice marbled paper used in the original free end page, I photocopied the board interior and used it as the new paste-down page, which covers the binding work on the inside.
As you can see in the third image, Volume One is still waiting for the emergency room doctor, but Volume Two is now complete and ready for another 150 years.
With a little good fortune, it will spend its second incarnation out of the sunlight and in the comfort of a good home, so those covers won’t come loose again.
Of course, after 150 years, I won’t be surprised if my arms simply drop off one day. I’ll keep the binder’s glue ready, just in case.
Come visit!
McHuston
Booksellers & Irish Bistro
Rose District
122 South Main St. Broken Arrow OK!
