Tap to unmute
Making A Medieval Book - Complete Process From Start to Finish - 60 hours in 24 minutes
Embed
- Published on Oct 25, 2022 veröffentlicht
- Hi everyone, I'm Dennis, and welcome to my bindery!
In this video you’ll see me undertaking all the various stages of my late medieval gothic binding project. Though I use some modern materials and tools, and have added a few anachronistic highlights, this book is entirely based on the binding structures and techniques that were common in 15th century Europe.
I've put this video together to be an easy, one-sitting overview of this intricate project. Since this version condenses over 60 hours of work into about 24 minutes, most of the process has of course been omitted. I've added some basic titles to help you understand the various stages, but this isn't a tutorial and doesn't have any instructions, material lists, or commentary. If you’d like to take a deeper dive into the making of this book (including a full commentary which you'll need to *TURN ON CAPTIONS* to see) look no further than my full 5-part (plus bonus episode in which I hand-craft all of the brass hardware used) series, links below. There you'll find full lists of tools and materials in the video descriptions, and the commentary (again, turn on those captions!) explains every step of the process.
If you’ve enjoyed this video then please consider subscribing if you haven’t yet done so; I do appreciate it! And I’ve got lots of new content in the works, so be sure to hit the bell to get notified when new videos come out!
Thanks for watching!
Dennis
Full Medieval Gothic Binding Series
Part 1 - Folding Pages, Endpapers, Piercing & Sewing: • Making A Medieval Book...
Part 2 - Trimming & Rounding, Edge Decoration, Sewing Endbands: • Making A Medieval Book...
Part 3 - Wooden Boards, Carving & Mortising, Attaching the Covers: • Making A Medieval Book...
Part 4 - Paring and Applying Leather: • Making A Medieval Book...
Part 5 - Leather Tooling and Brass Hardware: • Making A Medieval Book...
Bonus - Making Brass Book Hardware: • Making Book Hardware -...
________
You can now buy me a coffee here: www.buymeacoffee.com/fourkeys...
Or you can drop a tip in my PayPal account: paypal.me/FourKeysBooks?local...
Four Keys Book Arts marbled papers and handmade books are available for sale in my Etsy shop, with worldwide shipping available: etsy.me/2VGqhcr
Follow me on social media:
Instagram
four_keys_b...
Facebook
fourkeysbook...
All original works of art in this video are copyrighted exclusively by Four Keys Book Arts.
Music Credits:
A Song Without A Name by Poor Inked Endings - Listen to and support Poor Inked Endings here: noisetrade.com/poorinkedendin...
'Yonder Hill And Dale' by Aaron Kenny - / @contactkennya
'Marked' and 'Tavern Loop One' by Alexander Nakarada | www.serpentsoundstudios.com
Music promoted by www.free-stock-music.com
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) 
Howto & Style
![REBINDING A Court Of Silver Flames by Sarah J Maas Into a LEATHER Bound Book! [DIY, Bookbinding]](/img/1.gif)
This really gives great insight as to why books were so expensive back in the day. The amount of hours and skill dedicated to creating just one of these is quite impressive.
Then someone has to write in it and make no mistakes.
@ZeroByte imagine making a mistake in one of this...
@Isilion often they would write the book first and then bind it, that way you'd only have to recreate one pair of pages
No, it did not require this many hours to make books. Books were not expensive. Paper was damn near free. What cost was the scribe. Because due to the plague every ten years there were not many of them. So they could charge exorbitant prices. If one could read and write they made their own books and billions of them. Maybe check out the diaries from those in the workhouse over the decades. Back in the day they used recycled clothing, sheets, textiles to produce 100% cotton paper, and there was so much of it people could buy a ten pounds of 100% 140lb cotton paper for less than the price of a breakfast. Which amounted to less than a penny.
People even used old textiles, dresses, etc to cover wooden planks to make their own books.
Instead of listening to numb nut scholars whom must adhere to the agenda in order to earn a paycheck, do your own research and think for yourself. If books were so expensive why did people so gd poor they were forced into a workhouse, which was worse than a prison, have so many gd books and journals? If paper was so expensive why were all Christmas decorations, faux tapestries, toys, poppers, etc made out of paper and wood?
Book binders worked just as Factories today. As an assembly line. That's why the Everyman's library consisting of 100 books on every topic only cost $1.00. The entire point was that any human who bought the Everyman's Library could speak on any topic ever brought up in polite society. So that every man was a learned man.
Even manuscripts weren't expensive to make. They weren't a penny a book mind you, but they didn't cost an arm and a leg either. One could buy a blank sheep skin book relative cheap. It was hiring a scribe and then an illuminator and then passing for the adornments which cost money. Hitting an illuminator wasn't an expensive as hitting a scribe because artists were considered a laborer. Just like a the guy who cuts your grass or a construction laborer today. Plus, they lived independently. Not cloistered together in a church. So the plague didn't hit them as hard, so there were more of them.
also making parchment takes a long time because parchment came from animal skin, which means it's going to take a lot of days to make one
So many stages where I thought the book was ready and then it just kept getting better and better. Respect sir you're a true craftsman.
😂
Storms back in "AND ANOTHER THING!"
As an aspiring Silver Smith and Jeweler I LOVED THIS! Makes me want to create a Chased Silver book cover. I also prefer older hand tools myself.
Much admired your work. Thank you.
My elderly father, an archivist & self-taught bookbinder also spent many happy quiet hours in his little old self-built 'workshop' restoring old family Bibles, Quran, old family photo albums for the octogenarian in our town. I, a youngster, would ocassionally watch him work & he would gently comment on the various types of bookbinding leather or the twines & strings & the cover-boards. And, bent over his work-bench, he'd bring to my attention a little 'trick' he had devised to achieve a special 'tooling effect'. I could feel he was in a meditative state, quietly, calmly, patiently pasting down the covers or turning tight the book press.
Now he's gone.
When I go down to our basement I think i sometimes see him - puzzling over a damaged corner of an old fat book. The smell of leather & ink & paper... unmistakable presence of my gentle father.
Thank you for your presentation. From NewZealand.
Thank you for sharing this beautiful, heart-felt and rather poetic recounting of your father's memory. The way you have written this I feel as if I was there.
o espírito de seu pai às vezes vai à oficina.
If there truly is a god, this man was given a workshop to continue what he loved in the next life, and remember the fond times of instructing his child. Doing anything less would make such a god underworthy of worship.
Glad to read your experiences. They área great
Lord, I wish we all had fathers such as yours, especially since mine abandoned me. The world would be a tremendously better place
Not just a book binder but an artist, woodworker and seamster too! The final decorations on the leather were so intricate and it strikes you that at every stage in the process, there is really only one chance to get it right - no pressure, ha. Awe-inspiring - thank you for sharing. ❤😊
Absolutely beautiful. It feels like it holds a thousand stories even with the pages empty.
Among all the crap thrown onto You Tube, I stumble across this gem. The craftsmanship, attention to detail, soothing music, and the lack of AI or overenthusiastic voiceover is such a delight and a breath of fresh air. An all but forgotten trade presented in a top quality video. Respect to both you and your videographer. SUBSCRIBED.
I was going to write a comment, but you've already said it all. I love how straight to the point this video is - no 5 minutes intro, no crappy voiceovers, you just get to watch a pure talent make a piece of art.
DITTO,
You put into words what I couldn't
Check out Clickspring. He does have a voiceover but it's sane and calm. Same ridiculously high quality work as you see here, but in a different medium.
Agreed 👍
As a woodworker myself, I am seriously impressed by the combination of skills required to produce a book in that way. Such a beautiful craft.
Pro favor coloque legenda para a tradução. Eu sou do Brasil e gosto muito deste tipo de arte. Grata.
I had no idea how laborious it is to build such a book. I make my own books, but they are far from being the same as this one. Want craftsman, what a work of art. Congratulations. Gained one more subscriber.
I've seen thousands of craftmanship videos of all kinds. This is the closest I've gotten to tears. What an amazing craft. I feel like I now understand why you do what you do. Blown away!
You have forever changed my relationship with books. Impressive!
I was in the printing business for over 40 yearss in my life. Ive printed and bound 10's of thousands of books in that time, probably more. I've never seen a book bound so beautful in my life as this. Fantastic job.
Fantastic! "The Red Book of Westmarch" is the only name that came to mind when I saw this gorgeous work of art. To have Tolkien's works inside would be a dream-come-true.
I really enjoyed watching you put this book together, I love to watch how things are made, what a work of art.
the fact that you made those brass furnishings YOURSELF is just the icing on top of the cake. this is beautiful. amazing job and incredibly well done :]
Truly amazing talent, craft and skill... And quite the appreciated ASMR experience, too. Just the sounds of your work - and the wonderful instrumental music - make this all the more enjoyable. All my best! :)
I am completely blown away by this. Thank you so much for sharing the entire process that you took to make this by hand. It blows my mind. Absolutely beautiful!
I have to say this was throughly enjoyable! The book is stunning beyond words. I’ve watched the 5 part series you did with this project in much more detail and am in total awe of this brilliant piece of art. Thanks for making this shorter version!
Same here. Enjoyable 3 hours. Wish I had the skills to make one myself.
Super travail! Bravo. J'en ai fait beaucoup dans plusieurs styles du moyen âge. Si je peux le permettre une question, où trouves tu les pièces en métal ? Coins, fermoirs etc... Ils sont fait par toi même ou as tu trouvé un fournisseur qui en vend? De mon côté je dois les faire et cela demande du matériel d'orfèvre, par gain de temps j'aimerais en trouver dans le style médiéval . Merci d'avance pour ta réponse et encore bravo pour ce partage!
Wow, that’s beautiful 👍
@TheMoonSeesMe 00😊
@AMP Reliures if you look in the description there is a link to making the hardware
I had NO idea the insane amount of skill and craftsmanship that goes into making a book. I'm absolutely blown away.
What an absolutely stunning piece of art. And it gives wonderful insight, step by step how they were made. Looks like alot of work went into these. Thank you!
So beautiful!!! Not sure why this video popped up, but it was mesmerizing and now I'm subscribed! It was so interesting to see the structure that makes up a fine book. I've done small bookbinding projects, but stitching the inside signatures together and attaching a cardstock cover was as far as I went. Wow! I'm so impressed and blown away by every bit and layer of that cover! It was so satisfying to watch such fine craftsmanship and artistry and to see it result in such an incredible book. This is off the wall, but it gave me the visuals to go with a book I read called The Binding by Bridget Collins. The setting and subject matter of that book, while in a magical realism world, was Medieval-ish and was woven all throughout with bookbinding.
A beautiful book. You really know your craft. Looking forward to seeing more of it. Awesome!
What an amazing job as always.
I can see why books were highly treasured back in the early days of bookmaking. I know that even today I would treasure a beautiful book like that. But I could never afford one like this.
If you didn't go for parchment and used modern tools only thing here that is really expensive is leather and getting leatherworking tools. So you could make one for yourself probably around 200$. Or maybe cheaper if some stuff is cheaper there compared to here. And most of that cost is for tools and leather. Then again getting to a point where it looks so good is years of practice probably
@James San yeah, I think it's much like traditional art, you don't NEED expensive paints and brushes and such, even though they improve the final result (a bit like the gold and brass parts and the embossing, here), you just need practice, and a bit of imagination on knowing what would probably look good, like, this would probably be a high-end book even by their standards...
but I bet anyone could make a reasonable book themselves, using cheaper stuff like textile instead of leather, and such, but yeah, it certainly takes a lot of time to do it manually, and even longer for a beginner, although there are much simpler options, to start out with, not to mention smaller books
@James San conveniently youtube recommendations include "make faux leather and "suede" from a paper bag!" lol
Wish I knew this existed years ago! I would love to learn how to do even a bit of this !
@Elizabeth Baker Hi Elizabeth, I don't know which Country you are in, but if USA, then I suspect it is similar to UK, although larger States in the mid west might not have anyone local.
Bookbinders are still around, if in somewhat smaller numbers, but many give lessons on Bookbinding to enhance their earnings.
I live in Leeds, Yorkshire and just put Bookbinding lessons into my search engine and hey presto, they are available in my home town. I have done a course many years ago, and most of the basic repairs don't need very expensive kit.
Oh a tip if you do decide to, do some repairs and need a press, (they run expensive) a 2nd hand Black and Decker Workmate, or similar workbench will suffice🙂
The leather and woodwork truly amazing and the spine! I looked at my collection of shop bought classics with their printed on spines and shuddered. Thank you for sharing this video with us. You are a true artist and Craftsman of the highest order.❤
Wow that is absolutely beautiful. What a talent, and such patients too. I had no idea what went into the making of books especially a medieval one. Amazing!
Absolutely fascinating and enthralling. I could watch this over and over again. Being a printer, I now know the end bit of my work being made into books, hopefully for prosperity. Thank you for sharing this video.
This was extremely relaxing and impressive! You are a wizard with the tools mate, makes me want to buy it just by watching you put in all that passion into the work 👍🏽
Eu gostaria de ser aprendiz desse mestre. Uma verdadeira obra de arte.
I must say, that this was definitely one of the better videos that I've seen on the Internet. Well done, it's a beautiful piece of craftsmanship.
Gorgeous work. Thank you for sharing this.
I’ve wanted to learn to do this for years. Such masterful work!
This is truly amazing to watch. I would love to have a book like this. Beautiful.
This is so inspiring and I love your antique book press! I'd love to know where you found that gem or did you inherit it?
This is incredible! I need one 😂
Me and my three year old daughter has just sat and watched this three times! The amount of detail and work that went into just this one book, amazing!
That book is so gorgeous that I can't think of anything worthy to go inside it! 😸
the quran
@HaK1iM I don't think a fantasy novel fits.
@HaK1iM Agreed. Once you're dead you're gone. As conscious as a rock.
@ZeD u have so much to lose i got nothing to lose
It's so beautiful. The details... The craftsmanship that went into making it... I wouldn't be surprised if that book costs $1000.
And I'm pretty sure, anyone who holds that book will suddenly become a sorcerer. 😅
This is really a piece of Art you did here, very well done Sir !
If it took 60 Hours to craft one single Book, it´s easy to see why they where so precious at that time..
Absolutely amazing work! Thank you for sharing these creations. I especially love the details on the cover and the gold touches!
I JUST found this channel….and what a video to start! I’ve done book art, and this is so beautiful I might have gotten misty eyed. Thank you for sharing your work!
Lovely! I am a wood worker that grew up working in a leather goods shop and I know how to sew, so I really think I need to do this just to see how it sets with me. Your work is exquisite and quite nice. CHEERS!
so incredible! thank you for keeping such an artform alive, and for sharing the process with all us viewers!
Как же я люблю смотреть видео ручной работы создания каких-то подобных фэнтезийных вещей. очень завораживающе и залипательно ❤
I just watched the medieval book vid! It was like watching a symphony! Beautiful work.❤
Books were made to be treasured like hand made furniture.
Beautiful workmanship, thanks for sharing.
I had no idea how books are made. Your video was awesome. Your skill is a lost are, beautiful book! Thank you!
As I watch you progress through such an artisnal journey, I have a knitting project in my lap. I couldn't help but notice the beautiful cables and other patterning on your jumpers-- were they hand knitted? The editing and pacing for this is simply sublime. Thank you for sharing this journey!!
Truly astonishing. You are a master and I've never seen a more beautiful book. The leather tooling is immaculate and the burnished block edges are an inspiration. Thank you so much for sharing your talents with us.
Absolutely stunning and beautiful! I really want to try this myself. I have bound books before but with glue and no sewing. This really inspires me to try!
I feel i could cast a spell with a book like this, amazing job! 🧙♂️
Master craftsman. So painstakingly has this ancient art of book binding been exquisitely hand crafted . The sheer attention to detail is awesome. A joy to behold . Such a precious work of art.
This is absolutely stunning. Such magnificent work. I would love to have one, but I also know it's worth. From the products you used to the time you put into it, it's worth every penny. Keep up the great crafts.
I absolutely enjoyed watching this book come to life!
Чудо совершалось на моих глазах!
Низкий поклон мастерству человеческому! ❤❤❤
Fantastic!!! Your work really deserves to be highly valued! 😍❤️
Really impressive and spectacular!! I love it! ❤ When I was little I looked at old bibles as they were made. And I had always wanted to do a book like that. It is very beautiful. Congratulations on your talent. ✨
24:16 as an avid book lover you have made my day a whole lot better ❤️
In 1971 I saw the Lindisfarne manuscripts and knew l wanted to be a calligrapher which after year's of trials and tribulations through self teaching I realised a high standard in the craft. Once attained I put it to one side in search of pastures new. Now in my 73rd year I've realised book binding is what I was looking for. Thank you for posting this video my time left to me on this earth will be exciting ones learning a new but ancient craft.
Amazing work! I wish I could make something as awesome as you make with my own hands. Maybe someday 😊❤
It was such a gread job!!! This is a fragile and delicated job which doesn´t allow mistakes. One of the best bookbinder I have ever seen. Congratulations!!!
I love to read so I appreciate books. Watching you make this ABSOLUTELY beautiful book was wonderful! I was captivated watching you. Thank you for sharing your craft.
I must have been a bookmaker in a past life. I've wanted to be one ever since I was a kid and I began my life-long love affair with books. There is nothing to compare with a beautifully made book made with the traditional techniques that go back centuries. Then there are the crafts of fine paper-making and type-setting and printing, which all come together to make books happen.
Well, Creative goodness is what I thought I'd see from the start. But alas this went beyond my thoughts and expectations. Captivated, I watched in a whelm of awe as this maven crafted. Each step of meticulous detailing ending with the most subtle of refinements. His every action being a self evident play of.passion. And so now I must say Thank you and Salute you I do, for this Book was Beautifully Birthed from Artistic Love Masterfully Made!
Most incredible craft I have ever seen! It is GORGEOUS! When you removed the leather that had been glued and pressed against the spine, and I could see where the leather tightly covered the twine on the spine I GASPED! Incredibly beautiful. ❤
OMG! I’m in total amazement! The process was mesmerizing to watch and the result is fabulous! Such craftsmanship went into this! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🥰
Beautiful.
I would never be able to use a book like this - I cannot come up with something worthy of being inside such a work of art.
Tolkien could have
@Jolly Jokress this comment checks out
Judge Holden could use this book to sketch the world into it.
Actually I have one. Little bit lesser quality, but close enough. I write one page per month with my thoughts and memories for my daughter for the time when I'm gone. Don't ask what I paid, but I think it's money well spent when my child will hold it in later days and remember me.
@Kai Drache you make an expensive (I'm really sure of it) thing truly priceless, thank you for sharing this golden truth, it reminds all of us that there is something that has no price.
Just awesome. Hats off to you sir. I was spell bound. Thank you too Clip-Share and the internet for bringing this into my home. I've just found myself a new hobby.
Always a pleasure to watch a master doing his art.
this has given me a newfound respect for books. extremely moving and beautiful video, thank you!
I would love to have one of these but the fact that he doesn't sell them is torture! They look so good!!!! I love this channel to death and really brings back my artistic and nerdy/fantasy side whenever i watch this!
I love this! Completely beautiful. ONLY 60 hours, doesn't seem possible.
That was a pleasure to watch. Thank you for sharing your amazing talent with us. Reminded me of the beginning of the sword in the stone.
I found this video not only educational but oddly relaxing. Thank you.
Absolutely AMAZING! The detail is breathtaking!
Trabalho lindo!
Beautiful work!
Смотрю, затаив дыхание. БРАВО мастеру. Работа поистине уникальная. Невозможно описать такую красоту. Дай Господь мастеру здоровья, сил, вдохновенья в его нелегком и прекрасном труде.
Тот случай когда книгу точно можно судить по обложке, особенно учитывая что в данном случае сам носитель информации и является произведением искусства, а информации там нет.
Its fantastic to see how every step of this makes sense, when you see it beeing done, even if i could never have thought of it and would have no idea on how to start. This Video really needs no explaination at all, its just perfect!💗
Una de las cosas mas bellas que he visto, desde el inicio del proceso hasta el resultado final. Hermoso trabajo 👏👏👏
What a wonderful video. You have to be paper-crafter, needle-worker, woodworker and leather-worker to make this - and the margin for mistakes gets less and less as the project nears completion. Utterly absorbing to watch and what a stunning book!
Maravilha seu trabalho. Uma verdadeira arte. Parabéns. Pena que esses equipamentos , ferramentas, e matéria prima não encontramos no Brasil.
Im a house painter by trade and people all the time say how tedious painting looks. Im going to refer them to this video from now on. Outstanding work!
I've always known that books in the Middle ages where hard to make, expensive to produce, and beautiful works of art. However, I never realized how intricate the entire process was. Thank you for this. It's both informative and wonderful to watch a lost art such as this. I am definitely going to watch the individual videos. You have a new subscriber!
Making covers isn't even why they were expensive. They rewrote it on lamb skin by hand, using very precise and slow form of writing, adding images and initials ( first word of a page of chapter which itself was an image). Copying a book could be years of man work
Magnífico!
This is amazing, I was aware of how special editions were made but seeing the time, energy, and craftsmanship is really something
This was a true joy to watch! Thank you for sharing your talents with us!
I wish I had a way to buy just 1 of the books you make. Even if it was just a tiny one. I'd love to make it as a journal for my granddaughter that was just born. I wouldn't even expect nothing fancy just something plain and simple. Your work is just so amazing. 🥰
Amazing. Looks like a family journal. Would be really cool to do a fore edge image on it as well. Possibly hidden by guilting.
This is incredibly beautiful. Thank you for taking the time to document and share your highly skilled, painstaking process.
Beautiful! I love a good leatherbound book and will pay for them. I love your work!
I have taken old prayer books that have lost their spine covers, or the cover has come completely detached, and with paper and Elmer's glue, fixed them. It fascinated me, their construction, and this video goes even farther. Thank you!
I was captivated by the ENTIRE process. Wonderful work.
You're a true craftsman. That was incredibly beautiful to see unfold!
Amazing work!!! It reminds me some of my friend who was an Internationally known bookbinder. His name was David Bourbeau. A most amazing man!!! He would have loved to have seen this video as it really shows the meticulous work that goes into a book in the traditional way.
That was 20 minutes of sheer poetry. Such beautiful craftsmanship. ❤
This was lovely ! thank you so much for sharing it with us.❤
Sir I cannot put into words the immense respect I have for your skill. A pleasure to watch a true craftsman. Beautiful work.
*FANTÁSTICO!*
While the modern method of creating books has its obvious advantages (namely that it makes books easily accessible and affordable to everyone), there's something satisfying about seeing the hard work, dedication, and craftsmanship that was put into bookmaking centuries ago. I'm happy that it has now been documented in such a meticulous manner.
I am so impressed by the making of this book. It was nice to see how a book would be made back in the day.