Description
Antique Italian Religious Book, 1796, Hand-Printed Domino Paper Cover with Floral Bouquets and Dots.
Antique Italian Religious Book, 1796, Hand-Printed Domino Paper Cover with Floral Bouquets and Dots.
This antique Italian book, printed in Rome in 1796, features a religious content titled “Jesus Christ, Model of a Religious in Every Situation, with Added Confidence in Times of Distress, and a Double Alphabet for a Religious.” The book is beautifully covered in a hand-printed Domino paper, showcasing a charming design of dots and floral bouquets in shades of terracotta and teal green on a light beige background.
Dimensions:
6″ x 3 1/2″, thickness 3/4″ (15 cm x 9 cm, thickness 1.8 cm).
Condition:
The book shows wear on the spine but has no missing pages.
History of “Domino” Papers:
The paper used to cover these booklets was likely produced by the famous Remondini family. A precursor to modern wallpaper, dominotè papers were modestly and cheaply produced compared to marbled papers. They were used for various furnishing coverings and in the book industry as covers while manuscripts awaited binding. Typically, they featured geometric or floral patterns and became fashionable among the upper classes around the 18th century.
The production of dominotè paper spread to Britain and Italy, notably by the famous Remondini factory in Bassano del Grappa, Republic of Venice, active from 1660 to 1860. Their success eventually led to the decline of the French counterpart industry.
‘Domino’ printed paper is decorated using a woodblock with color applied via paintbrush or stencil. In France, these sheets of paper decorated with geometric or floral patterns peaked in popularity during the second half of the 18th century. Other countries also developed their specific printing methods for substantial volumes of decorated paper. Germany favored the copper-plate printing method for ‘gold embossed’ paper, while Italy used several woodblocks to produce intricate, richly colored paper.
‘Domino’ printed paper was produced by artisan ‘dominotiers’—craftsmen who sometimes also made playing cards (cartiers) or images (fabricants d’images). The history of making ‘domino’ printed paper is complex. It was used to decorate the interiors of boxes, drawers, and small items of furniture, and mainly for covering books and brochures.
Printed paper with large floral patterns often reproduced patterns from brocade, Cordoba leather, and Indian fabrics. They were designed as wallpaper, producing a continuous, repetitive pattern when assembled side by side. Dominotiers set up their workshops all over France, with major production centers in Paris, Chartres, Le Mans, and Orleans.
A dominotier’s workshop was small, often organized as a small family-style setup. The dominotier engraved the wood stencil himself or enlisted an artisan engraver. The woodblock print was dabbed with a “frotton” on a sheet of paper in the “crown” format (approx. 45 x 36 cm). Color, composed of natural pigments and gum Arabic, was then added by hand or using a stencil. Each sheet bore its name, the town where it was made, and a number written on the edge.
‘Domino’ printed paper was produced in thousands of copies by craftsmen, distributed in bulk, and sold cheaply. These fragile prints, intended for short-term use, were not highly regarded due to their popularity but are now rare. However, they have not disappeared entirely. In recent years, a group of historians, collectors, and artisans have revived this art form.