Jennifer Wolfe NAEA CONVENTION Baltimore, MD 2010

 Early Christians living in Egypt were known as Copts  Copts are credited with developing this binding method in the 2 nd or 3 rd century CE

Folio- One sheet of paper folded in half Leaf- one half of the folio Page- one side of the leaf A folio has two leaves and/or four pages Signature-a gathering of 2 or more folios Sewing station-sewing holes in the gutter fold

Spine-edge of book, attachments are generally at the spine Endpaper or Pastedown-papers inside front and back covers Cover- front and back covers are sometimes called the books boards, the outer sections of the book, protective covering Text block or Book block-everything between the covers

 Two Pieces for the cover.  5,or more, sections (front & back covers with 3 or more signatures)  String for binding  Awl for creating sewing stations

 Needle  Bone folder  Paper for template  Cover material  Paper for book block

 length of string = length of book spine x number of signatures + one book spine.  make sure to keep track of the tops and bottoms of the signatures so that you do not stitch them in upside down.

 Should be somewhat substantial  Mat board  Cardboard  Leather  Wood  Metal  Canvas board  If it can be sized and holes can be made, it will work!

Today we are using:  Davey board, cut 3.5”h. x 3.25”w.  Covered with decorative paper

 Prepare covers  Cover outer sides of davey board with decorative paper  Cut paper approximately ½ inch larger than the cover  Spread an even layer of glue on back of paper  Lay cover in center of paper to attach

 Turn over and smooth paper with bone folder  Turn back and wrap paper around edge of cover, beginning with the corners, following with long edges  Burnish glued papers for secure attachment

 Select another decorative paper and cut it just smaller than your cover to become endpaper  Spread an even layer of glue on back side of paper  Carefully place endpaper on inside of cover, centered

 Make folios from 6” x 3” drawing paper  Fold so that 3” edges meet (hamburger fold)  Burnish folds with bone folder  Stack folios in 3 equal groups to make signatures

 Make template for sewing stations  2” x 3” paper (pink), folded in half with long edges together (hot dog fold)  Open fold and mark in 3 stitching sites; near top, near bottom, and in the center

 Open each signature and place template inside, aligning top edge, bottom edge, and folds  Carefully use awl to pierce through each sewing station in every signature

 Use sewing station template to mark holes in the covers  Lay folded template about 3/8 inch from the long side of the front cover  Make marks corresponding to the holes in template

 Repeat for 2 nd cover  Remember to consider how covers relate to each other and the spine  Pierce holes as marked using screw punch or paper punch

 Prepare for assembling by stacking covers and signatures as they should be bound together  Thread needle with waxed linen

 Begin by picking up front cover and first signature  Working from center of signature, sew through signature (leaving a tail inside signature)  Take needle over the edge of cover and sew from front to back through the cover  Insert needle back into signature through same opening

 Make a knot using the 2 ends of thread  Make knot close to paper, but do not pull so tightly as to rip anything

 Needle travels inside the signature to the next sewing station to repeat  Repeat for each sewing station in the signature, but do not re-enter signature at the last sewing station

 Pick up next signature and stack with previous work  Remember to align tops and sewing stations  Insert needle into the first sewing station of the new signature (at the same end you finished last signature)

 Travel inside signature and sew at each station as before  Instead of sewing through the cover, you will loop around the stitch connecting the cover to the first signature  When you are at the last sewing station add the next signature and repeat procedure

 Adding the back cover is done at the same time as adding the last signature  Hold last signature and back cover together in place for stitching  Rather than inserting needle into last signature, sew through back cover (outside to inside) and then insert into last signature

 Continue to travel inside signature (last) to next station  Bring needle outside station, through back cover, around outer stitch (next to last signature), and back into signature (last)

 When you re-enter last sewing station of last signature, tie off loose end and trim tail  YOU HAVE JUST COMPLETED A COPTIC BOUND BOOK! CONGRATULATIONS!