When thinking of embroidery, most people think, of course, about models and patterns sewed onto clothing in order to embellish them. What many people don't know is that in history, embroidery was used not just for clothing and textile accessories, but also for books.
The British Library Database of Bookbindings holds a superb collection embroidered book covers dating back to the 17 th century, but also even to the 15 th century.
These covers are amazing not just due to the great use of a technique that is usually associated with fashion (maybe today we would call that "mixed arts"), but also because of the great value that was placed on these book covers. Because the content of books was extremely important in those times, the objects themselves had to reflect this importance and thus amazing materials and the highest quality of craftsmanship were used. For example, we can see book covers made form velvet and embroidered with gold or silver strings - something that even for 21 st century standards would be a rarity and an amazing work. Take some time to realize how hard it was to extract, process and use these materials back in the 16 th or 17 th centuries and you can already tell how precious these books really are.
Fraquoh and Franchomme
Further reading:
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