[DCRM-L] Unusual signatures

[Linde B.]

I was not calling into question the AAS's cataloging, by any means.  I was
simply curious about what the phenomenon actually was and what it
signified, which you've elucidated wonderfully, Richard.

Thanks!
Linde

On Fri, Sep 26, 2014 at 9:42 AM, Noble, Richard <richard_noble at brown.edu>
wrote:

> The signatures are referred to as "unused". They are an element of the
> printing plates, which could actually be arranged on the press in a
> different way, that is, to produce a different format, and often were.
>
> In some cases the plates contained two sets of signatures--often
> alphabetical signatures for 8s and numerical signatures for 12s--and in
> many cases neither set was used. This is a strictly American practice, as
> far as I've ever seen--I've never seen it in a British or continental book.
> It became so ridiculous that American printers generally abandoned the use
> of signatures altogether over the course of the 1870s.
>
> It is often possible to establish the actual structure of the book (the
> arrangement of the leaves into gatherings), but unless you're familiar with
> the phenomenon, and confident about your  ability to analyze the structure,
> there's no reason worry about a collation. It's still possible to state
> what the signatures are purely as an element of the printing plates,
> without saying anything about format. Still, for most situations, a good
> account of the pagination will suffice.
>
> This is an early example, and I'd certainly remark on it for its value as
> evidence regarding American printing practice of the period and place--but
> Deborah's quite right to suggest being content with the AAS record--they're
> ... ummm ... pretty good at cataloging.
>
> FWIW, there are examples of formal treatment in the Brown University
> catalog:
>
> http://josiah.brown.edu/search/X=%22unused+signatures%22
>
>
> RICHARD NOBLE :: RARE MATERIALS CATALOGUER :: JOHN HAY LIBRARY
> BROWN UNIVERSITY  ::  PROVIDENCE, R.I. 02912  ::  401-863-1187
> <Richard_Noble at Br <RICHARD_NOBLE at BROWN.EDU>own.edu>
>
> On Thu, Sep 25, 2014 at 6:32 PM, Linde B. <linde.brocato at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>
>> On Thu, Sep 25, 2014 at 4:38 PM, Deborah J. Leslie <DJLeslie at folger.edu>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> For good reason! Run away from those signatures (and even the assertion
>>> that it's an 8vo) as fast as you can and don't look back. There's not much
>>> room for improvement on the AAS's master record: 191238702
>>
>>
>> Just out of curiosity, why?
>>
>> Are they meaningless?
>>
>> Is this just too modern for us?
>>
>> Linde M. Brocato
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> "I went out to the kitchen to make coffee -- yards of coffee.
>> Rich, strong, bitter, boiling hot, ruthless, depraved. The lifeblood of
>> tired men."
>> --Raymond Chandler, *The Long Goodbye*
>>
>> Food which is grown under conditions of oppression is ripe for rejection;
>> overly-packaged and environmentally insensitive products seem indulgent;
>> foods full of empty calories, cholesterol, fats and sugars do nothing to
>> promote health and eviscerate the image of the Divine in which we are
>> created.
>> --Reconstructionist Rabbi Richard Hirsh
>>
>> "It's always because we love that we are rebellious; it takes a great
>> deal of
>> love to give a damn one way or another what happens from now on: I still
>> do."
>>   Kenneth Patchen, Poet & Painter
>>
>> Hell is the state in which we are barred from receiving what we truly
>> need because of the value we give to what we merely want. -- Jacob
>> Needleman,
>>
>> *Money and the Meaning of Life*Though no one can go back and make a
>> brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new end.
>>
>>
>>
>


-- 
"I went out to the kitchen to make coffee -- yards of coffee.
Rich, strong, bitter, boiling hot, ruthless, depraved. The lifeblood of
tired men."
--Raymond Chandler, *The Long Goodbye*

Food which is grown under conditions of oppression is ripe for rejection;
overly-packaged and environmentally insensitive products seem indulgent;
foods full of empty calories, cholesterol, fats and sugars do nothing to
promote health and eviscerate the image of the Divine in which we are
created.
--Reconstructionist Rabbi Richard Hirsh

"It's always because we love that we are rebellious; it takes a great deal
of
love to give a damn one way or another what happens from now on: I still
do."
  Kenneth Patchen, Poet & Painter

Hell is the state in which we are barred from receiving what we truly need
because of the value we give to what we merely want. -- Jacob Needleman,

*Money and the Meaning of Life*Though no one can go back and make a brand
new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new end.
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