2-999-376 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Cover of "Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye", volume 2, 1892. Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye (A Collection of the Histories of Troy) was written by Raoul Lefèvre and first published in 1464. This 19th-century edition, a product of English designer, writer, and printer William Morris's Kelmscott Press, was bound by Cedric Chivers of Bath. Chivers developed a process of making translucent parchment, also called vellum (animal skin that is stretched and scraped thin). He patented the method in 1898 and called the result "Vellucent" bindings. The painting of the young girl in this binding's central panel was applied to the book first, then the translucent vellum was laid over top. The girl's hand mirror is mother-of-pearl.