Binding

The sewing and covering of a codex, or binding, requires the binder to assemble completed leaves of a manuscript into gatherings, or quires, and then sew the quires together. The quires were then sewn onto cords or thongs for support which were then attached to the back and front covers. Eventually, the entire codex would be covered with leather or a like material (Brown, 1994, p. 22).  

In Medieval times, the back and front covers of a codex were made from pieces of wood which were "necessary to exert pressure on parchment to keep the pages from warping" (Avrin, 1991, p.304) These wooden front and back covers were usually made from a harder wood, like oak, to "minimize worming" (Brown, 1994, p. 22). Also, the edges of the boards were often beveled.

This manuscript's medieval binding is still present. Its back and front covers are made from "two thick oak boards" (Roberts, 2013) with clearly beveled edges (see Figures 8 and 9). Within the oak boards, a few tiny worm holes are present, but overall the condition of the front and back covers is exceptional.

Figure 8

Figure 9. Beveled Edges

Channeling, or a "system of grooves cut into the binding boards" (Brown, 1994, p.38), is present on the front and back boards of this manuscript. Each groove still possesses fragments of the "wide skin thongs" (Roberts, 2013) that were threaded through the channeling to bind the quires to the boards (see Figure 10). While the thongs are still present within the channeling, the lengths of thong that would have stretched between the two boards, holding them together, have now disintegrated. Also, the covering, probably leather, is missing as well. 

Figure 10

A strap and pin mechanism was sometimes used to keep the manuscript closed (Brown, 1994, p.188). According to Emma Roberts (2013), parchment and paper might swell or change shape with varying temperature and dampness conditions so the strap and pin mechanism was used to keep the expanding pages within the wooden boards. On this particular manuscript, the nails which held the leather strap used to close the book can still be seen (see Figure 11).

Figure 11

Note: Interestingly, at some point in time, the manuscript was placed inside an archival box labeled "Peter Comestor's Bible History" to keep the manuscript safe from the elements, the box having nothing to do with the actual manuscript inside. This storage choice produced several years of confusion and errors among scholars who were attempting to authenticate the manuscript; most scholars sought to associate the box with the codex resulting in much inaccuracy regarding publication date and origin. The 1961 study notes from Woolf and Vielliard attempting to authenticate the work are even titled "Notes on the Peter Comestor Manuscript".