The Einbanddatenbank

A Key Resource for Identifying German Bookbindings of the 15th and 16th Centuries

The Einbanddatenbank, hosted by the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, Preussischer Kulturbesitz, provides access to collections of rubbings held in large German libraries. The Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin holds the Schwenke-Schunke Sammlung; the Württembergische Landesbibliothek in Stuttgart has the rubbings produced by Ernst Kyriss; the Herzog August Bibliothek in Wolfenbüttel contributes rubbings produced by Helmar Härtel; and the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich adds the collection of Ferdinand Geldner. Between them, these collections cover most areas of German binding production, and the database continues to grow through the addition of rubbings of bindings in other collections. The database has been online since 2005 and was comprehensively revised – and translated into English – before its relaunch in 2019.

To ascertain the exact size and shape of a binding tool, producing rubbings is still an essential part of the work of the binding historian although digital photography and image matching techniques are increasingly joining the toolkit. In contrast to digital photography and image matching, however, rubbings are inexpensive to produce, requiring only a piece of paper and a pencil, but it requires practice to produce accurate rubbings.

The quality of the rubbings varies, but each tool is given a reference number, its shape and type are described, measurements are provided and references to published literature are provided. The tools are all illustrated with rubbings or digital images, and each tool is linked to a workshop which in turn has a reference number and a name. When going from an individual tool to the workshop that used it, other tools linked to the workshop are identified. Entries for workshops also contain information on when and where binders were active and list references to them in published literature. The focus of the database is on listing and identifying binding tools and workshops, but it sometimes also contains information on former owners as well as bibliographical references such as GW, VD16 and VD17.

While sometimes time-consuming to consult, the Einbanddatenbank is an essential tool for anyone wishing to study and identify German bindings produced in the 15th and 16th centuries.

Karen Limper-Herz, Honorary Secretary