Everything you ever wanted to know about BOOKMARKS!
To celebrate World Bookmark Day on February 25th, let’s take a deep dive into the world of bookmarks. Believe me, they are much more than just a way of marking your reading progress. We’ll talk some history, and then I’ll share some personal favorites from my collection!
An Ancient History
Coptic manuscript (3rd-12th c.): Metropolitan Museum of Art, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Bookmarks have been around for centuries and first appeared in Egypt. Remnants of bookmarks from the time of the Roman Empire have been discovered in ancient manuscripts like the one above. This one is written in Coptic, an ancient Egyptian language that was later replaced by Arabic. The oldest complete bookmark, also Egyptian, dates from the 6th century and was made of ornate leather on one side and a fine parchment called vellum on the other.
Medieval Bookmarks
Medieval rotating bookmark
Medieval monks put a whole new spin on the bookmark by creating a version that went beyond marking a page. This new style wasn’t much to look at, but a rotating dial bookmark was ingenious, allowing a reader to mark exactly where they left off. The rotating dial slid up and down the page and could also be flipped left or right to pinpoint a specific location in a column.
Victorian Bookmarks
Attribution: H. Leh and company: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/1899_-_H_Leh_%26_Company_Bookmark_-_Allentown_PA.jpg
The Victorians brought style and beauty to their bookmarks, and the craft of bookmarking really took off. The popularity of inexpensive, paper bookmarks was a direct result of books being more available to the public. Soon advertisers took notice of the growing fad, and by the 1880’s, bookmarks were being used to sell everything from soap and perfumes to pianos and stoves. The bookmark above was distributed by H. Leh & Company, which started as a shoe store in 1850 and grew to become one of the Lehigh Valley’s premier department stores.
Bookmark Materials
Bookmarks have been made from all kinds of things from the commonplace like paper, plastic, cardboard, and fabric to the more valuable such as silver, gold, and other precious metals, some even encrusted with gemstones. But, I like to think this bookmark I bought in Thailand is as unusual as any bookmark you’re every likely to see since it’s made from 100% elephant dung. An excellent example of creative reuse!
Collecting
I’m an avid bookmark collector, but I can’t compete with some guy from the Netherlands who claims to own over 80,000 bookmarks (really?). My collection, although considerably smaller, is fairly eclectic but tends to be heavy on art and unique little gems I find when I travel. Like this adorable kangaroo and boomerang bookmark I found in Australia.
The Future
By Martouf - Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9925791
With the rising popularity of e-books it’s hard to know what will become of the bookmark. As more and more people switch to electronic formats will the bookmark become extinct? I certainly hope not. (But then again, my bookmark collection may become invaluable 😎)
One last fascination of mine is the number of strange things people use in place of real bookmarks. Librarians report that people return library books with all kinds of things hidden inside: utility bills, debit cards, family photos, recipes, ticket stubs, and Monopoly game money. Even actual $100 bills! Don’t let this happen to you—buy a bookmark today!
Links to References
Beauty and Utility: the History of Bookmarks
Incredible, Innovative and Infernal Bookmarks through History
