The Girdle Book - A Unique Book Binding in the Middle Ages
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The girdle book, also known as belt book or book pouch, was a special form of book binding that was very popular in the Middle Ages from the 14th century onwards. The special feature was that a second cover was placed over the normal leather binding, which extended beyond the lower book edge. This created a pouch-like shape that made it possible to carry the book like a bag or attach it to a belt.
Purpose and Content of Girdle Books
Girdle books primarily served as portable breviaries for members of religious orders, allowing them to always have their prayer books with them. Wealthy laypeople also used the precious girdle books for books of hours and devotional books. Traveling doctors and merchants used girdle books as a vademecum to keep important notes readily available. The content of the mostly small-format books in octavo, duodecimo, or dedez format initially consisted of inscribed parchment, later also of handmade paper.
Production and Materials
The first girdle books were created in the bookbinding workshops of monasteries. The book blocks were sewn onto cords and provided with wooden covers that were covered with leather. The leather at the lower book edge was extended to form the characteristic book pouch. This was often artfully knotted or provided with fastening straps and metal clasps. To be able to store the girdle books on shelves, the pouches were often cut off later.
Preserved Specimens and the End of Girdle Books
Only a few original girdle books from the 15th and 16th centuries have survived to this day, including 23 specimens in European libraries. Some examples are the prayer book of Margarethe von Münsterberg around 1500 in Dessau, the girdle book from Tegernsee in the Bavarian State Library in Munich, and a prayer book from 1454-1484 in the Abbey Library of Kremsmünster. In the 16th century, the era of girdle books came to an end, but they still fascinate today as a reminiscence of a special form of medieval bookbinding art.
