There's no question that I love what I do. There is so much satisfaction from seeing an old book, a precious treasure to it's owner, be transformed into the usable and beautiful book that they want it to be.
By far, the book that I am asked to restore most often, is a Victorian Family Bible. These over sized Bibles are usually full of family history - births, deaths, marriages, and have often been passed through the family for generations.
This week, I restored another treasured family Bible. Filled with carefully penned details of family past and present, the sight of the Copperplate handwriting evokes all sorts of questions and emotions about the history of the book.... Where did this book originate...perhaps London....maybe Edinburgh? How did it find it's way to Australia? Who was the first owner? What did they do? Was it a wedding gift (as is often the case)?
Even though these questions are left unanswered, there is something both compelling and heartwarming in the dedication shown to keep their family history alive.