For Book Lovers!

I just stumbled over this lovely blog, specializing in the English Regency period. And loved this article about 'fore-edge painting'- books were fanned out, held in a press, and then in the margin, painted, so it was undetectable under normal use. (Supposedly, the idea was invented by a king who became tired of a duchess borrowing his books and denying they were his, so he couldn't get them back. So he had his coat of arms painted fore-edge on a book he lent her, and when he found it in her bookcase and she said it was hers, he just fanned it to show her the coat of arms. :^) I love that story whether true or not.

There's a lot more to the article.


https://regencyredingote.wordpress.com/2019/07/12/fore-edge-painting-the-very-best-book-secret-ever/

Including links. This is a contemporary artist creating these paintings on books, including some videos showing them in action.

https://www.foredgefrost.co.uk