E
ed -See Edited, Edition, Editor.
Edges -The outer surfaces of the leaves of a
book.
Edited - Prepared for publication.
Editio Princeps - The first printed edition of a
work previously available only in manuscript.
- Edition - Refers to all the copies of a book
printed from the one setting of type. There may be more than one
printing run of an edition.
Editor - A person who gathers material for a book
oversees a test written by others, and/or makes the text more readable.
8vo - See Octavo.
Elephant Folio - A book about 23 inches tall.
Embossing - A process which produces decorations
raised above the surface (typically of printable material).
Embossed - The finish in a paper cover over
boards which has a raised (as opposed to indented or blind-stamped)
surface.
- End Paper, Endsheet, Endp., or e.p. - The
piece of paper that, when pasted to the boards, attaches the book to
its binding. One side is stuck to the board (the pastedown) and the
other is free (the free endpaper). The right left position of
pastedown and free end papers are reversed front and back.
Engraving - The preparation of a printing surface by
cutting or etching the surface.
ep - See End Papers.
Ephemera - From the Greek work ephemeron,
meaning something that disappears quickly. Examples are: manifestos,
broadsides, programs, menus, tickets, playbills, etc.
Errata - Mistakes or errors. Generally
encountered in the term "errata slip", a small sheet of paper
laid into a book by a publisher who has discovered errors prior to
publication.
Etching - The chemical treatment of a printing
surface to incise a design or lettering.
ex - see Example.
Example - A particular copy of an edition.
Ex-Lib - See Ex-Library.
Ex-Library or Ex-libris - Books that were once
part of a library collection. They usually show heavy wear, library
stamps, card pockets glued into the front of the book. Generally, ex
library copies have little value except as reading copies.
- Ex Libris. Latin - "From the
library of...."
Ex-Libris - A bookplate printed with the owner's
name or initials.
Extra Illustrated - Enhanced with the addition of
plates from other sources, autograph material etc. Also grangerized.
F
Facsimile - An exact
reproduction of an original book depicting the original text and the
book's physical appearance.
- Fair - Fair is a worn book that has complete
text pages (including those with maps or plates) but may lack
endpapers, half-title, etc. (which must be noted). Binding, jacket (if
any, etc., may also be worn. All defects must be noted.
F, FF, fol - See Folio or Leaves.
Festschrift - A publication honoring an
individual with a series of scholarly essays.
ffep - The end paper that is not attached to the
inside front cover. See End Papers.
Fillet - A rule in gilt or blind on the cover of
a book, usually around the circumference of the cover.
Fine - Approaches the condition of "As
New", but without being crisp. For the use of the term Fine there
must be no defects, etc., and if the jacket has a small tear, or other
defect, or looks worn, this should be noted. (AB Bookman.) Often, in older
books this standard is relaxed a little and the condition may be judged
relative to the average or usual condition of copies encountered; a fine
copy is therefore considerably above average.
Fine Binding - A book, usually bound in leather,
with elaborate or tasteful tooling and decoration.
Fine Printing - The art of producing beautifully
designed and executed books.
First and Second Printing before Publication -
This indicates the publisher was successful in promoting the book and had
more orders before the actual publication date than the first printing
quantity would cover, therefore a second printing was ordered. Not a first
edition.
First Edition - Generally used by book dealers
and collectors to mean the first appearance of a work in book or pamphlet
form, in its first printing.
First Separate Edition - The first appearance as
a complete book or pamphlet of a work that has previously appeared as part
of another book.
First Thus - Means not a first edition, but
something is new. It may be revised, have a new introduction by the author
or someone else, but the first publication in paperback form, or first by
another publisher.
First Trade Edition - A term used to distinguish
between the first (usually limited) appearance of a book from the first
commercial or generally released version.
Flyleaf - A blank leaf, sometimes more than one,
following the front free endpaper, or at the end of a book where there is
not sufficient text to fill out the last few pages.
Fly title - See Half-title.
Folio - Has several meanings: (1) a leaf numbered
on the front; (2) the numeral itself; and (3) a folio-sized book. See Book
Sizes.
Fore-edge painting - The front page edges of the
book are bent back to expose a greater area and a watercolor painting is
applied to this surface. After completion the book is closed and the
painting cannot be seen. The opposite is also true. The painting is done
on the edge of the pages so it can be seen when the book is closed but not
discernible when the book was open.
Fore edge - The front of a book -- the spine is
the back of a book.
4to - See Quarto.
Format - The format of a
book is the number of times a sheet of paper is folded to make the book's
pages. Though often used to designate the size of a book, the size of
various formats can vary greatly, and format should be understood as only
a general indication of size. Those interested in a complete description
of these formats should consult McKerrow, 164-75. The formats, with their
common abbreviations, are:
- Folio (Fo.). - The format created by folding a sheet
of paper in half, usually making a book in the shape of an upright
rectangle. As a general indication of size, a folio tends to be the
largest of the formats.
- Quarto (Qto. 4to). - The format created by folding a
sheet of paper twice, generally more square in shape than a folio.
Quartos can range in size from a book larger than a copy of your local
Yellow Pages to a book only half that size.
- Octavo (Oct., 8vo). - The most common format of a
book, an octavo is created by folding a sheet of paper three times,
resulting in a book in the shape of an upright rectangle.
- Duodecimo (12mo). - The format of a book generally
smaller than octavo and larger than sextodecimo. If you feel compelled
to explore the mysteries of this term, see McKerrow, 168-73.
- Sextodecimo (16mo). - The format of a small book
created by folding a sheet of paper four times.
- Vicesimo-quarto (24mo). - The format of a small book
generally smaller than a sextodecimo and larger than a
tricesimo-secundo. For an exploration of this complex format, see
McKerrow, 173-4.
- Tricesimo-secundo (32mo). - The format of a small
book created by folding a sheet of paper five times.
Foxed - See Foxing.
Foxing - A discoloration of the paper in a book,
consisting of light brown spots caused by iron deposits or fungus. May
occur in anything less than the highest quality paper, and thus does not
necessarily diminish the value of the book.
Frayed - Unraveled at the edges, mainly
on a cloth binding.
Free Endpaper - See End Papers.
French-fold - Pages joined at the fore-edge and
printed on the outer side only, also accordion fold.
Frontis - See Frontispiece.
Frontispiece or Frontis - A plate or illustration
at the front of the book, usually facing the title page. Frontispieces are
often of much higher quality than the rest of the illustrations in a book.
The absence of a frontispiece sometimes indicates a later printing of the
book.
Front Matter - The pages preceding the text of a
book, in the following order: bastard title
or fly title, frontispiece, title page, copyright
page, dedication, preface or
forward, table of
contents, list of
illustrations, introduction, acknowledgments, half title
Full binding - A book which is covered entirely
in the same material. |