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In addition to a regular copy of the Kelmscott Press's edition of the works
of Chaucer, bound in half-holland paper, the Rare Book and Manuscript Library
also owns this specimen binding, made for William Morris by J. & J.
Leighton, the text block made up of mostly repeating sheets from the print run
of the book. Morris's wish was that the binding be executed in 15th-century
style, using pigskin over oak boards, with blind-tooling. The tools were cut
specially for this binding, and were based on designs found on two incunables
owned by the British Library, the Apocalypse block book and the Richel Bible.
According to Sir Sydney Cockerell in his "List of All the Books Printed at the
Kelmscott Press," in A Note by William Morris on his Aims in Founding The
Kelmscott Press, this was the only design executed by Leighton's. It was
then used by the Doves Bindery to bind forty-eight copies, including two printed
on vellum, in full white pigskin.
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