Antique French Leather Book Bundle, Set of Five, 17th to 19th Century

Period: 17th to 19th century, French

Size: Between 5 and 8 inches tall

A set of five antique French books in leather, chosen by hand from the Foundresse library. Each set mixes full calf and quarter leather over marbled boards, with gilt tooled spines and morocco title labels, drawn from a shelf of history, sermons, plays, poetry and letters printed between the 1600s and the 1800s. Heights and spine colors vary within a set, from tan to dark brown, and the five are picked to sit together. Every set includes at least one 18th century volume. These are odd volumes, single books out of longer runs that were broken up long ago, which is what puts five of them at this price. A matched run of the same work costs several times as much, and a shelf of odd volumes is how most French libraries actually looked. They have been read for two hundred years, so expect rubbed leather, worn corners, cracked or repaired joints, and the occasional volume rebacked or with a replaced spine. Contents are in French. Wear consistent with age and use, sold as found.

Historical Context

French books of this period left the printer as loose sheets, and the buyer paid a binder to dress them, which is why two copies of the same title can look nothing alike. Full calf was the standard, a whole skin over boards, with the spine tooled in gilt between the raised bands where the cords run. Quarter leather came in as the economical answer, leather on the spine only where the wear falls, and the boards covered in marbled paper made by floating color on water. Most of these were rebound at least once, and a later spine on an early text block is part of the book's own history.

Styling Ideas

Stack them on a side table under a lamp, stand them on a mantel between two objects, or run them along a shelf with the spines out. They are the fastest way to give a new bookcase some age.