Bookbinding

Bookbinding

The complex geometric patterning on these leather book covers represents one of the distinctive features of works of art commissioned under the Mamluk sultans of Egypt and Syria (1250–1517). Following a well-established tradition in the Islamic world, these decorative book bindings ornamented with stamped, blind tooled and gold tooled lines and dots, may have originally bound one of the elaborately embellished Qur'ans or manuscripts commissioned by the Mamluks as a symbol of piety or station in the empire.

Emanating from a central twelve-pointed star, an array of geometric interlaces expand to meet other stars which appear in the corners of the rectangular double border. A tiny rope-like pattern forms an endless knot motif within the central star and on the inner border to create a continuous guilloche. The tiny rope is utilized again on the outer border in a repeated figure-eight- and double "S"- design resembling highly stylized pseudo-inscriptions.

In preparation for the binding process, sheets of paper or vellum were folded in half on their long side, followed by up to four successive folds at a right angle to the one preceeding. This grouping or "gathering" of sheets yields double the number of pages when trimmed. Commonly, Islamic books were written on the loose leaves of a gathering before the binding stage. To produce a text block, the gatherings were traditionally sewn together with a link-stitch technique at two points along the fold. The text block was then trimmed and awaited insertion into the book cover.

Constituent parts of the bookcover's reinforcing boards are attached by paper or leather hinges and covered with skin which is then decorated with tooling and stamping. These components comprise an upper cover, spine, lower cover, a fore-edge flap and envelope flap which fold up and overlap the upper cover.

As with this example, a doublure or inner lining made of a supple light leather embossed with a beautiful block-pressed patterning of arabesques was attached to the inner face of the boards.

Rochelle Kessler in [Walker et al. 1994]

Hagop Kevorkian, New York (until 1933; gifted to MMA)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Junior Museum. "The Mathematics of Islamic Art," October 30, 1979–April 30, 1980, no catalogue.

New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Renaissance of Islam: Art of the Mamluks," November 21, 1981–January 10, 1982, suppl. #3.

Mexico City. Colegio de San Ildefonso. "Arte Islámico del Museo Metropolitano de Arte de Nueva York," September 30, 1994–January 8, 1995, no. 31.

Dimand, Maurice S. A Handbook of Muhammadan Art. 2nd rev. and enl. ed. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1944. p. 79, ill. p. 80, fig. 46.

Metropolitan Museum of Art, Daniel S. Walker, Arturo Ponce Guadián, Sussan Babaie, Stefano Carboni, Aimee Froom, Marie Lukens Swietochowski, Tomoko Masuya, Annie Christine Daskalakis-Matthews, Abdallah Kahil, and Rochelle Kessler. "Colegio de San Ildefonso, Septiembre de 1994–Enero de 1995." In Arte Islámico del Museo Metropolitano de Arte de Nueva York. Mexico City: Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes, 1994. no. 31, pp. 106–7, ill. (b/w).