transverse spine linings (Q685): Difference between revisions

A strip of sheet material usually placed across the panel formed between two sewing stations, and occasionally over an individual sewing support, and which extends beyond on both sides the width of the spine, to form lining extensions at each end. Panel transverse linings are almost always found only on bindings with raised sewing supports, with one lining to each panel, whereas sewing support transverse linings will only be found on bindings with recessed sewing supports. On some bindings with widely-spaced sewing supports they can be found used in pairs in which case each should be described separately as they may be made from different materials. The panel transverse lining is one of the most common types of spine lining, and was used in all European countries from the fifteenth to the eighteenth century, though it was much less commonly used in France and Britain than elsewhere, even allowing for a general reluctance in Britain to use spine linings at all. There is a marked difference in the height of the linings within the panels formed by the sewing supports between northern and southern Europe. South of the Alps and in Spain, the linings will generally fill the entire height of the panels in which they are found (full-height transverse spine linings), whereas in Germany and the Low Countries, they are more likely to be much narrower, often filling less than 50% of the height of the panel (narrow transverse spine linings).