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#1
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Uncut signatures normal or no?
I have several "Complete works of..." sets with uncut signatures. For
instance all of my "Complete Works of Dickens" printed in 1902 have to have the front edges cut every 4 pages or so. At the end, the top edges need to be cut. The same is true of my fancy bound "...Thackeray". At first I thought it just bad binding processes, but after seeing "Lily Bart" clearly cutting signatures in the movie version of "House of Mirth" (while on the train trying to catch Percy Grice's eye) I am wondering if it is simply something that was expected in turn of the century printings. Kris |
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#2
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Uncut signatures normal or no?
"Whiteleather" wrote in message oups.com... I have several "Complete works of..." sets with uncut signatures. For instance all of my "Complete Works of Dickens" printed in 1902 have to have the front edges cut every 4 pages or so. At the end, the top edges need to be cut. The same is true of my fancy bound "...Thackeray". At first I thought it just bad binding processes, but after seeing "Lily Bart" clearly cutting signatures in the movie version of "House of Mirth" (while on the train trying to catch Percy Grice's eye) I am wondering if it is simply something that was expected in turn of the century printings. Kris Perfectly normal and known as "unopened". quote Unopened: a book with signatures which have never been cut as opposed to untrimmed and uneven (see "Uncut"); unopened books retain the folds of the original gathering and contain many pages which cannot be read without first opening the pages with a knife. Some collectors prefer an unopened book because it indicates that the book has never been read; other collectors who read their books would rather not have the task of cutting open pages and risking tears and jagged leaf edges. http://www.abaa.org/cgi-bin/abaa/abaapages/glossary /quote michael adams |
#3
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Uncut signatures normal or no?
I have several "Complete works of..." sets with uncut signatures. For
instance all of my "Complete Works of Dickens" printed in 1902 have to have the front edges cut every 4 pages or so. At the end, the top edges need to be cut. The same is true of my fancy bound "...Thackeray". At first I thought it just bad binding processes, but after seeing "Lily Bart" clearly cutting signatures in the movie version of "House of Mirth" (while on the train trying to catch Percy Grice's eye) I am wondering if it is simply something that was expected in turn of the century printings. Kris Quite common. Over the years I've bought a couple of dozen books and sets that needed to be cut open at the top. It was a popular Victorian bookbinding practice. Apparently readers cut the pages open as they read the book, with their trusty letter opener at their side. Some used their fingers -- nasty work, that. Some used knives recently coated with butter and jam -- sticky business. You run across books in which only a few dozen pages are cut open, indicating a lack of application on the part of the original owner. |
#4
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Uncut signatures normal or no?
Whiteleather wrote:
I have several "Complete works of..." sets with uncut signatures. For instance all of my "Complete Works of Dickens" printed in 1902 have to have the front edges cut every 4 pages or so. At the end, the top edges need to be cut. The same is true of my fancy bound "...Thackeray". At first I thought it just bad binding processes, but after seeing "Lily Bart" clearly cutting signatures in the movie version of "House of Mirth" (while on the train trying to catch Percy Grice's eye) I am wondering if it is simply something that was expected in turn of the century printings. Kris My girlfriend says the best way is to use a credit card. While she is seldom wrong (as I have learned through bitter experience), I would check with a conservator, I am so ham fisted, my Christmas presents all look as though they were opened with a powered lawnmower. |
#5
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Uncut signatures normal or no?
I have several "Complete works of..." sets with uncut signatures. For
instance all of my "Complete Works of Dickens" printed in 1902 have to have the front edges cut every 4 pages or so. At the end, the top edges need to be cut. The same is true of my fancy bound "...Thackeray". At first I thought it just bad binding processes, but after seeing "Lily Bart" clearly cutting signatures in the movie version of "House of Mirth" (while on the train trying to catch Percy Grice's eye) I am wondering if it is simply something that was expected in turn of the century printings. Kris My girlfriend says the best way is to use a credit card. While she is seldom wrong (as I have learned through bitter experience), I would check with a conservator, I am so ham fisted, my Christmas presents all look as though they were opened with a powered lawnmower. Let me guess. She also uses a credit card to chop carrots and till the garden. Probably can't bear to put it down. |
#6
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Uncut signatures normal or no?
Page knives were fairly common in earlier times (many of decorated ivory and
sterling silver), but people often misidentify them as letter openers. The difference is that the blade is generally the same width throughout its length and has a rounded tip (sort of like a large butterknife or spatula) rather than the pointed one used for slipping into an envelope. The whole thing, including handle, is often 10-14" long. Lacking one of these antiques, I just use a small thin knife with a deliberately dulled blade. Chris |
#7
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Uncut signatures normal or no?
postscript: I think they're also called page turners or paper knives.
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#8
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Uncut signatures normal or no?
Thanks folks. I am a reader, so I cut the pages free. I use a thin
bladed fish knife (for slicing gravlax) and do a whole volume at one sitting so I can start reading it that night. The credit card sounds ok, but the paper in these volumes will break if bent or tugged to hard. And here I thought a "page turner" was an especially engrossing story. After the description above, I think I have a couple of these actual turners in a box around here somewhere. I think they are ivory with either dragons or birds on them. Kris in NY |
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