Springback Fine Binding

I love springback bindings, especially the German version I learned during my apprenticeship. Below images of one I completed on the textblock of the exhibit catalog for L'Infinito, one of those international bookbinding competition and exhibitions. This one was organized by the Provincia di Macerata. Competitors were asked to design bindings for the poem L'Infinito by Italian poet Giacomo Leopardi (1798-1837). The catalog has a section for the 125 bindings that formed the exhibition and are considered the best of the entries submitted. The remaining 475 submissions are divided by national school and reproduced without commentary. I lifted the description from Oak Knoll Books who have a copy of the catalog available in case someone wants to bind it. ;-) I never bought the set book for the exhibit, but did get the catalog as I have a great weakness for exhibit catalogs for my personal library.

Exhibit catalogs in my library. An intervention might be called for...

This all makes for a very hefty tome, just begging for a springback binding. I wanted to show the underlying structure and love veiney calf parchment. This is what I came up with:

German-style springback; sewn on three tapes with endsheets of Roma paper; graphite top edge; red leather wrapped endband; covered with two veined calf vellum panels at top and bottom with center panel painted with textured acrylic; spine and sewing exposed in center panel and painted with textured acrylics; title stamped in gold. 28 x 25.5 x 6.5 cm. Bound 2004.

Parchment panels that wrapped around at head and tail. 

Detail of spine with the book closed.

Detail of spine with the book opened.

Looking down the "hollow" of the spine.

My tutorial for the German style of springback can be viewed here and downloaded here.

Just make sure the spring isn't too "strong." 😉

"Spring" Binding Hath Sprung - Zum Frühling

The ground in Syracuse (NY) still has snow and the temperatures are still unseasonably cold from time to time, BUT the Sun crosses the Equator tomorrow and the first day of spring is here. The days are getting longer, our clocks "sprung" forward in the US on the 8th, so why not "celebrate" one of my favorite binding structures, the springback.

Hier in Syracuse, NY, liegt noch Schnee, die Temperaturen sind noch gelegentlich niedriger als normal, ABER die Sonne überquert den Equator morgen und der Frühling ist hier! Die Tage werden länger und wir haben in den USA am 8. auf Sommerzeit umgestellt. Also, warum nicht den Frühling mit dem Sprungrücken feiern? (im Englischen ein "gutes" Wortspiel...)

Above the logo for the first Bonefolder Bind-O-Rama (2004) that was featured on the cover of the Bonefolder. While published in the fall, the Bonefolder was announced early in the spring.

Oben, das Logo für das erste  Bind-O-Rama des Bonefolder von 2004. Das Heft kam im Herbst des Jahres zum ersten Mal heraus, wurde aber im Frühling angekündigt.

The Bonefolder, Vol 1, no. 1, Fall 2004

And from the Bind-O-Rama, this miniature springback by Roberta Lavadour.

“A Counting” – English-style springback, leather cover with double straight bands laced with deer vellum. 600 pages of 9 lb. Canary paper with painted edges. Inscription notes the multiplier for each of the 300 page spreads needed to equal the number of dead and wounded American soldiers and Iraqi civilians since March 2003. 7.5 x 7 x 2.5 cm. Bound 2004.

The mechanics of this springback reflect Richard Bakers demonstration at the Guild of Book Workers Seminar on Standards of Excellence in Hand Bookbinding in Denver CO, with a few references to Vaughans 1929 classic, Modern Bookbinding. The new purpose of this springback is to pop up the pop-up. The book measures 5.5 inches by 6.5 inches by 1.5 inches. Bound 2004.

Historical ledger bindings in an archive...

The structure is most common to the German and English binding traditions and has seen increased interest in the US since the early 2000s with articles and presentations largely by Peter D. Verheyen, Donia Conn, Richard Baker, and Karen Hanmer.

Sprungrücken gibt es am Häufigsten in der deutschen und englischen Buchbindertradition, und hat in den USA aber Anfang der 2000er neue Aufmerksamkeit gesehen in Aufsätzen, Vorführungen, und Kursen, hauptsächlich durch  Peter D. Verheyen, Donia Conn, Richard Baker, und Karen Hanmer.

Poster for the German tradition by Verheyen and Conn based on materials for our article in The New Bookbinder.
Guild of Book Workers Standards Friday Forum poster session, Minneapolis, MN, 2002

Richard Baker "hammering over" the headcap for the English-style.
Guild of Book Workers' Standards, Denver, CO 2003.

Cut-away model of German springback
Schnittmodell vom deutschen Sprungrücken

Interactive cut-away diagram (auf Englisch) here

These tutorials, with bibliographies can be found at | Anleitungen auf Englisch gibts hier:

• The Springback: Instructions in the German tradition for a binding designed for account, ledger, and guest books. By Peter D. Verheyen and Donia Conn.
• The Springback: Instructions in the English tradition for a binding designed for account, ledger, and guest books. By Peter D. Verheyen.

The structure is also described in all the leading bookbinding manuals published in German and in England.

Die Einbandart ist in allen gängigen Fachbüchern zu finden, also Henningsen, Lüers, Moessner,Wiese, Zahn...

[Edit 28 April, 2015: Nice article from West Dean Conservation in the UK on a student's first time making an English style springback | Schöner Aufsatz von einem West Dean Conservation Studentin in der UK: Springback Binding with Richard Nichols by Lucy Cokes]

Donia Conn cutting the spine on the German style
Rücken Ende absägen beim deutschen Sprungrücken

What's the attraction to this arcane structure that has long since been replaced by Microsoft Excel and now mostly sees use for guest books? It's the energetic springing flat of the pages as the book is opened that seem to give it wings.

Warum die Aufmerksamkeit für diese ausgestorbene Einbandart die vielleicht noch für Gästebücher anwendung sieht? Es ist das kraftvolle Öffnen und die flach-liegenden Seiten die dem Einband Flügel verleihen...

At left, "Not possible...," at right, "whoa! Wow!"
"As seen at the 1948 journeyman's exam in Cologne"
Sprungrücken, Das Falzbein, 1948, pg 96

So, let's spring into spring with renewed energy!
Also, ab in den Frühling mit erneuter Energie... !