Вестник Екатеринбургской духовной семинарии (Feb 2022)
VARIETIES OF BOOK BINDINGS IN THE LIBRARIES OF THE URAL INDUSTRIALISTS OF THE 18TH CENTURY
Abstract
The article is devoted to a most poorly studied topics of bibliology — the history of Russian binding of the 18th century. It contains an analysis of the bindings of 6 lost personal libraries of the Ural plant-owners of that time, made on the basis of the inventories of their property. In total, about 4,000 records were identified and analyzed with an indication of the types of bindings (or their absence), which allows speaking about the representativeness of the given data. In addition to property inventories, the manufacturers’ correspondence and consolidated statements, as well as records in 18th century books, found in modern book depositories of the Urals, are taken into account. Altogether, this rare documentary information made it possible for the first time to take into account what terminology was used when describing the bindings by contemporaries, and allowed to make adjustments to the existing classifications of bindings. The researcher presents examples showing which books were in expensive gilded, morocco or parchment bindings, and which were «rooted in leather» in paper bindings, or were «unbound» and simply «binded in blocks»; the author also gives their descriptions, and indicates prices. The ratio of different types of bindings has been presented in the table, showing which of them was preferred by the library owners. Conditions and sequence of orders of bindings for individual publications and periodicals are considered; the examples of obtaining books in publishing covers are also highlighted. The question remains about the masters who provided bookbinding services to their customers. Sources do not provide accurate evidence of the existence of own bookbinding shops that belonged to the Ural plant-owners, but they do not exclude them either. The author provides documentary evidence of Demidov’s orders for bindings from St. Petersburg masters. It is concluded that the considered libraries of 18th century manufacturers mostly had modest bindings, without super exlibrises, and that expensive and luxurious bindings made up an insignificant part of them, and related mainly to liturgical books. In general, the acquirement of books corresponded not to the bibliophile, but to the educational and «working» purposes for their owners, the first Ural industrialists, who often came from other estates and considered books as a necessary tool and a source of knowledge.
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