https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/b55968161eb346dfab12ce50ea6b4fb6 Exploring Signed Bindings at McMaster University A guided tour of ten English and French binderies who bound books now housed in the rare book collection at McMaster Ruth-Ellen St. Onge and Bronwen Glover, William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections June 6, 2024 What is a signed binding? By the late eighteenth century, it became a more common practice for bookbinders in Europe and North America to add their names to the custom bindings they created by hand. Methods of signing bindings include: ink stamps often placed on the flyleaves of the book, gilt stamps on the leather turn-ins of the binding, and paper labels or "tickets" affixed to the paste-downs or flyleaves of the book. Signed bindings at McMaster As of June 2024, we have identified two hundred signed bindings at the William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections. These bindings were produced by one hundred individual binders and binding firms in England, France, Ireland, Scotland, and North America. They range in date from the mid eighteenth century to the late twentieth century. -- Karen Hanmer www.karenhanmer.com Karen Hanmer Book Arts. Since 1997 answering the question "What will I do with my liberal arts degree?"