good red bole

Ingredients

red bole, clean water, egg white, gold leaf, soft cotton

Preparation Steps

Original Recipe Text

The edges are cut and evened with a sharp knife. Good red bole is shaved finely over the edges, and five or six drops of clean water are rubbed in with fingertips. After drying for the duration of one 'paternoster', it is rubbed with soft paper and burnished. The edge is then painted with egg white, and gold leaf is applied while the surface is wet, then rubbed down with cotton (p. 58).

Evidence

"Good red bole is shaven finely over the edges and five or six drops of clean water are sprinkled on and rubbed in with the finger tips. ... Then the edge is painted with egg white and, while this is very wet, the gold is laid on and gently rubbed down with soft cotton."

Remarks

Anshelmus Faust's manual is described as the earliest detailed account of how books were bound and decorated. He specifically warns that the tools must be neither too hot nor too cold, depending on the dampness of the ground (p. 58).