This month’s feature is a bookbinding leather roll tool. It is numbered in the Museum’s Collection as #1996.002.31. This tool was used in a process called ‘gold-tooling’, where gold leaf would be applied to the cover of a book. The process used an adhesive called ‘glair’ that would be smeared onto the surface of the leather, followed by the gold leaf. The gold was then coated in grease in order to hold it in place.

This month's feature is a spotlight on the museum's conservation efforts. Within the museum's vast collection are many rare and aged books, some published as early as the 16th century. The books cover topics ranging from paper making, paper chemistry, to botany.