The Repair ofĀ āLāEmpire Colonia De La France Indo-Chineā
Books that have some form of attempted repair by someone who is obviously not a bookbinder or book conservator, it usually comes with Scotch-tape, also known as Sellotape. This book belongs to a Rare Book Collection in an Institutionās library and I was commissioned to repair it.
The binding looks modern, perhaps some time in the 70s or 80s, because the decorative paper that was used with the quarter leather binding is a strange material that as seen in the photographs, has a moray pattern and texture to it.Ā
The hinge on the front was about 60% detached, and after consolidating the leather, I lifted the parts that have broken, and inserted a thinly pared leather between the original leather and the boards. Thankfully, the calf leather I had was similar in colour to the original leather and I did not have to do much toning.Ā The inner hinges were repaired using Japanese kozo tissue and left untoned.Ā
One fascinating thing about this book is that it is a collection of journals that were bound together into a volume. The library stamp inside the book was by aĀ āMobilization And Intelligence Departmentā and coincidently, stamped on my birthday, November 5th. But it was way before I was born, in 1903.Ā
