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Thomas

Title

Subject

bookbinding proposal

Description

The pages of the book will be folded to form a cross and the volume will be bound in plain sackcloth. The binders will harvest fiber from plants growing around the monument to Thomas à Kempis at Mount Saint Agnes in the Netherlands and then use these fibers to make the endpapers for the bound volume. The book will be placed in a hinged wooden chemise made of Lebanese olive and cedar, woods said to have been used to construct the cross of Jesus. The chemise will be studded with gold and jewels, similar to select bindings on early manuscript volumes. The book is to be rebound as if it were a holy relic, while the unornamented sackcloth reflects the poverty, chastity, and obedience of the Brethren of the Common Life.

Creator

Thomas, Peter and Thomas, Donna

Publisher

Bridwell Library Special Collections

Date

Rights

This work is protected by copyright law. No commercial reproduction or distribution is permitted. This file may be used for educational uses only, provided it is not altered in any way, and the copyright line is cited. (Bridwell Library Special Collections, SMU).

Format

Displayed as .jpg

Language

Type

Book

Collection

The 6th DeGolyer Competition

Citation

Thomas, Peter and Thomas, Donna, “Thomas,” Bridwell Library Special Collections Exhibitions, accessed January 19, 2026, https://bridwell.omeka.net/items/show/2242.