Home>Book Terms A-B, C-D, E-F, G-L, M-Q, R-Z 

Rare - Implies the books is extremely scarce, perhaps only turning up once every ten years or so.

Reading Copy - A copy of a book that is worn or used to such a degree that it is not in good enough condition to be considered collectible.

Re-backed - A book that has been repaired by getting a new spine and mended hinges.

Re-cased - A book that has been glued back into its covers after having been shaken loose.

Recto - The front side of a leaf in a bound book; in other words, the right-hand page of an opened book. Also called the obverse.

Rejointed - Means the book has been repaired preserving the original covers, including the spine.

Relief Printing - The class of reproductive process to which letterpress and woodcuts belong, in which the raised areas of the block or plate are the principle printing surface.

rem -See Remainder

Remainder - A remainder is a book that is sold in bulk by a publisher once its sales fallen off. Publishers often mark remaindered books by stamping or slashing an edge with a marker. First editions with remainder marks are collectable but of lesser value. Remainders may also be referred to as publisher over runs.

Remainder Marks - The publisher will mark the bottom edges of books sold as remainders with a stamp, a black marker, or spray paint, which speckles the bottom.

Remarque - A small sketch in the margin of an etching or engraving.

Remboîtage - The transfer of a binding from the work it originally contained to another. Sometimes simply an act of salvage, this is more frequently sophistication.

Retrée - A copy of a vellum book assembled from excess sheets and not accounted for in the statement of edition.

Reverse - The rear side of a leaf in a bound book; in other words, the leftt-hand page of an opened book. Also called the verso.

rfep - The end paper that is not attached to the inside rear cover. See End Papers.

rm - See Remainder Marks.

Rubbed - Damaged by friction, usually refers to a book's covers.

Rule, gilt rule - A gilt line on a binding

Russia - A reddish-brown calfskin impregnated with birch bark oil. A popular binding material in the late Eighteenth century, it is rarely met with today as it tends to deteriorate badly.

S

Scarce - A book that might take you two or three years of hunting to find. Not as rare as "rare."

Scuffed - Damaged by friction, heavily rubbed.

Self-wraps - Wrappers that imitate a dust wrapper with their vestigial flaps.

ser - See Series.

Series - A group of volumes with a common theme issued in succession by a single publisher.

Sextodecimo or 16mo - A small book, approximately 4 inches wide and 6 inches tall, but still larger than a miniature book. About half to three- quarters the size of a 12mo. Shambala Books is currently publishing a widely distributed series of books in this size. Also refers to a book in which the pages are printed "16-up" and the sheet folded four times.

Shaken - A book that is loose within its covers and moves fairly freely when moved back and forth within the hands.

Signature - In bookmaking, this does not mean the author's name written out in his hand. It refers rather to the group of pages produced by folding a single printed sheet, ready for sewing or gluing into a book.

Silked - (A leaf) restored by lamination with a thin, almost invisible application of Japanese tissue.

16mo - See sextodecimo.

Slipcase A protective box that holds a book or set of books. Slip cases can be made from any material, but today are most often cloth or paper covered cardboard. Slip cases add significant protection to books by absorbing wear and damage that would otherwise be suffered by the book itself. Only the spine of the book is   exposed.

sophistication - An attempt to increase the value of a book by "improving" it, by adding missing leaves from another copy, by heavily restoring it or by other means. This is not necessarily a dishonest practice, provided that the improvements are declared.

Spine - The book's backbone, where the signatures are gathered. The spine is covered with the backstrip.

Split - A book and cover that are starting to part company.

Sprung - A book that is separated from its binding, follows "starting," "cracking," and "split."

Stacked - A book with a shifted binding.

Stamping - a) Decorative impression on leather bindings, b) Ink or blind impressions on pages or edges of an ex-library book.

Stapled Wraps - Wrappers without a spine and bound with staples rather than glue.

State - Closely allied to the definition of "issue". State generally refers to a change other than a correction of a misprint. Of a book: a portion of a printing with minor typographical emendations or alterations. Of a print: A minor reworking of the original design on a plate.

State Proof - Artist's proof impression of a variant ("state") of an engraving or etching.

Stereotype - An cast impression in from set-up type or another plate into which stereotype metal is poured. The result is a durable plate whose use saves wear to the original type.

Stiff Wraps - Wrappers of above average thickness.

Suite - In luxury book illustration (usually French), a separately printed, hors texte unbound set of the illustrations.

Sunned - Faded from exposure to light or direct sunlight.

T

teg - See Top Edge Gilt or Gilt Edges.

Thousands - Some publishers in the nineteenth century added a notice on the title page stating, for instance "Eighth Thousand" to indicate a later printing. These are not first editions.

Three-decker - A book in three volumes, almost exclusively used to describe Victorian novels of the late nineteenth century.

Tight - Indicated that a book's hinges are holding firm.

Tipped-in - Means the plate, autograph, letter, photo, etc., is actually attached to the book.

Tirage - French for "a printing". Usually used for a limited edition, often numbered and dated.

Tissue - A thin protective sheet laid over an illustration.

Title Page - The title page, near the beginning of the book, lists the title and subtitle of the book the authors, editors, and/or contributors, the publisher or printer, and sometimes the place and date of publication. The title page information should be used for cataloguing (not the half-title page or covers).

Title Page Index - Used in describing periodicals, to indicate that the title page and index are present; without a title page and index, the volume is incomplete.

tls - See Typed Letter Signed.

Tooling - Decorative tracing on a leather binding.

Top Edge Gilt or t.e.g

The top edges of a book's pages have a thin layer of gold leaf. Gilding was originally introduced by publishers to inhibit dust from settling on a book's pages. For decorative purposes some books have been gilded on all the edges. This is referred to by the abbreviation a.e.g.

tpi - See Title Page Index.

Trade Edition  -The regularly published edtion. This term is used to differentiate it from a limited signed edition of the same book.

Trimmed - An adjective indicating that the pages have been cut down to a size smaller than when originally issued.

12mo - See Duodecimo.

Typed Letter Signed - A typewritten letter signed by hand.

U

Uncut - The pages of the completed book have not been shaved down to a uniform surface.

Unopened -The leaves of the book are still joined at the folds, not slit apart. Many books in the last century were so issued; the reader was expected to have the binder do the job or to open the pages with a paper-knife.

unpag - See Unpaginated.

Unpaginated - The pages are not numbered (although each signature may be designated by letter).

Unsewn - In original folded sheets, never bound.

Unsophisticated - Pure, genuine, unrestored, and if a book is so described, it can mean trouble as far as condition is concerned.

V

Variant - A book that differs in one or more features from others of the same impression, but a positive sequence has not been established.

Vellum - Specially treated calfskin, kidskin, or lambskin used like paper for printing and calligraphy, and sometimes used for binding. The most common material used in medieval manuscripts, it is generally seen today only in a very few luxurious books published by fine presses.

Verso - The second, or rear, side of a leaf in a book; in other words, the left-hand page of an opened book. Also called the reverse.

vol - The volume of the book.

vg - See Condition - Very Good.

Very Good - Very Good can describe a used book that does show some small signs of wear -- but no tears -- on either binding or paper. Any defects must be noted. (AB Bookman.) Above average condition.

W

Watermark - A translucent design, often emblematic, in a sheet of paper indicating the papermaker

Waterstained - Discoloration and perhaps actual shrinking of the leaves or binding.

Wood cut - A method of illustration in which a block of wood is carved with special tools to prepare a raised printing surface. This is the oldest of all techniques for reproducing illustration.

Wood engraving - A process somewhat similar to the wood cut in which a design is incised as a series of fine lines . This technique is of later development and is capable of far more detailed effects than the woodcut

Wormed/Wormholes -  Usually in books from the eighteenth century or earlier, damage from larvae burrowing straight through the pages.

Wove Paper - Paper which, when held to the light, appears to have an even pattern of fine mesh, distinct from laid paper.

wr, wrs - See Wrappers.

Wrap-around Band - The band of printed paper the length of the dust-wrapper of a book. Wrap-around bands contain favorable reviews and are put around some copies of books. Obviously fragile, that are of interest to collectors.

Wrappers - The outer covering of a paperback book, often sewn or stapled in sections. This term should be distinguished from "wrapper" which refers to the dust jacket of a hardcover book.

X

Xylography - wood engraving

Y

Z

Zincograph - A zinc etching. An uncommon term, but what is an alphabet without Z?

Home>Book Terms A-B, C-D, E-F, G-L, M-Q, R-Z 

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