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(Phillip Woods – Bookbinder) The Somme: An Eyewitness History. Edited and Introduced by Robert T. Foley and Helen McCartney. The Folio Society. London. 2006. 295p. 9.25″ x 6.5″. Folding map inside back cover, single page map, black and white photographs throughout. Printed on Abbey Wove paper in Plantin. Unique binding by Phillip Woods in 2007. Bound in crimson goatskin with onlays of grey, black, mustard yellow and poppy red. Front cover design of a soldier, with the back board to a ribbon-like design of the same colors. Sewn using waxed thread onto five linen tapes. All edges were colored using acrylic paints of mustard and red. Silk head and tailbands. Gilt title on spine. Endpapers of black and gold Japanese papers. Brown buckram dropback box lined in black suede with gilt title on spine. Laid in the base of the box is a sheet with an image of the book and details of the binding and the concept. Fine.

Woods writes: “Upon leaving school in the Roman city of Chester in the north west of England, I was apprenticed to Paul C. Delrue in his bindery within the ancient city walls of Chester from 1985 to 1991, where I received numerous young fine bookbinder awards. “I decided to have an all round experience in the book so happily slipped into the printing industry, always intending to return to my first love of hand bookbinding. “My particular interest is in design bookbinding. My binding of ‘The Somme’ was viewed last year at the famous John Rylands Library in Manchester where it received many accolades in the world of Art bookbinding.” He also writes: “I found the book an epic subject to bind, and was moved by the total destruction of those who died at the Somme in 1916. “I decided to let my design instantly hint at the disasters of war and the ultimate futility it embraces. I hope I have succeeded.”

Related items: Catalogue 37 - Summer 2009, Fine Designer Bindings, Phillip Woods