Originally published in 1912 and based on The Sandars Lectures for 1911, this volume provides a historical study of provincial bookbinding. At the time of publication the presses of the university towns Oxford and Cambridge had received considerable attention. As regards other towns, printing in St Albans and York has received some examination, but most had been curiously neglected, including important printing centres such as Ipswich, Worcester and Canterbury. This book attempts to re-contextualise the development of provincial printing as a national process, one in which a number of different towns were involved. The text is concise but informative, containing illustrative examples, a title list of provincial books issued during the period, and a list of biographical works and articles. This is a fascinating study that will be of value to anyone with an interest in the history of printing.
