The Seventeenth Century
The bindings of the seventeenth century show that an increased variety of designs, materials, and styles could be utilized, even within one nation's boundaries. Bridwell Library's English bindings of the seventeenth century include blind-rolled calfskin, gold-tooled goatskin, embroidered satin, and a "sombre" binding dressed in black for use during lent or mourning. In France, the most significant stylistic development of the seventeenth century was the rise of the binding "à la fanfare" – characterized by an overall elaboration of fine gilt ornament around a central decorative compartment.