Bookbindings and Other Bibliophily

For over 40 years, Anthony Hobson has occupied a commanding position in the world of books. He ran Sotheby's book department for some 20 years and since then has established an independent reputation with a series of studies of bookbinding and the history of books generally in Renaissance Italy. On the occasion of his 70th birthday a group of friends honoured his achievements with a collection of essays, some published in 1991 in "The Book Collector", but the major part in this book. Contributors have provided essays, on bookbinding and the history of books. They number some of the most distinguished scholars now working in the field. Their subjects range from great collectors - Grolier, Mahieu and Anne de Montmorency - to the technique of bookbinding and the book trade, from Peter Schoeffer at Mainz to 18th-century French bookbinding and Dutch bookbinding up to 1800. In geographical scope, there are essays on Ethiopic bookbinding, the Visconti Library at Milan and the book collectors from Britain to Italy. This last topic is addressed by Dennis Rhodes, who has edited the volume and compiled a bibliography of Anthony Hobson's writings.