Bookbinding and the Conservation of Books
A Dictionary of Descriptive Terminology

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trimming out

The operation of cleaning surplus leather. cloth, etc., from the inside of the boards of a book bound by hand before filling-in or pasting down. Trimming out the sides of half leather bindings before attaching the paper sides was virtually unknown until approximately the middle of the 19th century. consequently the edges of the leather spine and corners are ragged, and the raggedness is usually emphasized by the abrasion and darkening of the paper over the humps. Not until about the 1870s, when superior craftsmanship was applied to some half leather bindings, did trimming out become customary, except in economy bindings. The outside finish of half bindings was also improved by "filling-in" with a layer or layers of paper under the marbled paper or cloth sides, making them level with the leather. (236 , 335 )




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