| On this page we are going to look at some of the fine details that are often missed in an analysis of gold tooled decoration. This particular binding is in good condition and the decoration on the raised bands still clearly visible, such is often not the case and even Isabelle de Conihout & Pascal Ract-Madoux have only given us a glimpse of this palette, in their brief description of Boyet's tools. ( Reliures françaises du XVIIe siècle..., Paris, 2002). In Comparative Diagram 1, we see first, their limited illustration/rubbing of this palette III. I am not absolutely certain that this is the same palette found on our Mons N.T. binding, however for the moment we can catalogue it as their Type III |
| In Comparative Diagram 2, we see firstly the 6 Isabelle de Conihout & Pascal Ract-Madoux examples shown as rubbings, to this I have added 4 examples from the work of Jeanne-Marie Metivier 2002, as well as 9 others. Notice that Type II is very similar to Type III, these palettes were often employed on raised bands and are not easily distinguished one from the other, especially on well worn books, however the two additional dots of Type II are the key to separating them. I have shown this diagram on a previous page however this is an upgraded version with the addition of Type VII varieties A and B. Also I must confess that palette XVI and palette XVII may actually be parts the same palette. |
| In Comparative Diagram 3, I have extracted the palettes found at the top and bottom of the Mons N.T. spine, these appear to be Boyet roulette C2 (see the roulette diagram on the previous page). Often we find a larger Type C employed in this place. |
| In Comparative Diagram 4 we see a greatly enlarged view of Boyet's 3 block roulettes that were often employed to frame the spine compartments. In this enlargement we see that there is here, 2 different types or varieties of this kind of roulette, I have catalogued one as K however there are possibly several different varieties. In Compartive Diagram 4, you can see that upper roulette looks more like dots than blocks, we might be tempted to call it a 3 dot roulette as opposed to a 3 block. Often it is hard to see these dots or blocks clearly and trying to establish a length for these roulettes might require something that is currently outside the bounds of modern science. |
| In Comparative Diagram 5 we see a Boyet Type J roulette, somewhat smaller than that shown in the diagram on the previous page. This again is a greatly enlarged image that is in reality just under one inch wide. Now I bet you are asking why I am showing this roulette at an angle, i.e. that the right side is lower than the left, in fact you are only imagining that it is, the top the last unit on the right is the same height as the first unit on the left. I know I know, I hear you saying BUT BUT... now... slowly scroll the image up to the top of your screen. |
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| Even experts are sometimes wrong, before you spend thousands on a book, please do your own research! Just because I say a certain binding can be attributed to le Maitre isn't any kind of guarantee, don't take my word for it, go a step further and get your own proof. In these pages I have provided you with a way of doing just that. |
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