Creator
Zaehnsdorf, Joseph W.
Title
The art of bookbinding.
Coverage
London
Publisher
George Bell & Sons
Date
1880
Description
Joseph Zaehnsdorf the elder (1816–1886) was born in Budapest and as a young man was apprenticed to bookbinders in Stuttgart and Vienna. He traveled to London in 1837, and in the 1840s established his own bookbinding firm, which continued to flourish after his death under his son, Joseph William Zaehnsdorf (1853–1930). The younger Zaehnsdorf’s Art of Bookbinding is a detailed overview of the designs, techniques, materials, machinery and staff employed by the firm at the height of its popularity and influence. Appropriately enough, this copy boasts a Zaehnsdorf binding elaborately tooled in gilt à la fanfare. There is no presentation inscription, but Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf was a Grolier member from 1893 until his death, and the book was quite likely his gift to the Club.