[GOTHIC AND RENAISSANCE BOOKBINDINGS]. A collection of 23 works, pamphlets, extracts and offprints by Ernst Kyriss

Various places, 1965. Very good. Various sizes (8vo., 4to. and folio). Some apart some inherent browning on account of the wartime paper supply. All original wrappers present when so issued (some chips to wrappers - see below). Preserved in a red cloth folding case (commissioned by Martin Breslauer?). IMPORTANT COLLECTION OF 23 WORKS, EXTRACTS, OFFPRINTS AND PAMPHLETS WRITTEN BY ERNST KYRISS (1881-1974), THE FOREMOST HISTORIAN OF GOTHIC BOOKBINDINGS, FROM THE COLLECTION OF B.H. BRESLAUER, HIMSELF A GREAT BINDINGS HISTORIAN AND AN EVEN GREATER COLLECTOR.

Our collection includes THE FIRST publication by Kryss on the history of bookbinding (1929/30) as well as an INSCRIBED copy of his doctoral thesis (incredibly this title is not listed in Worldcat). Many of these early offprints and pamphlets simply do not appear on the market; if found, they are almost always in substandard condition, unlike the works in our collection which in general are preserved in excellent state.

Originally trained as an engineer, Kyriss "retired for health reasons" in 1924 (we were informed by B.H. Breslauer that Kyriss married a wealthy woman and quit his job). From 1924-1928 Kyriss studied art history in Munich where he first encountered incunabula. He soon realized that the history of German Gothic bookbindings had not been methodically studied. His first publication on bindings was published in 1929/1930; this was followed by no less than 180 articles, pamphlets and monographs, including his magnum opus, the 4-volume "Verzierte gotische Einbande im alten deutschen Sprachgebiet" (1951-1958). In this extraordinary work, Kyriss differentiated "only" 186 workshops, of which he had recorded 7,088 different tools, but for publishing reasons, however, he only depicted "only" 1,711 individual stamps and rolls, most of which were South German.

Indeed, Kyriss obsessively studied gothic bindings for more than four decades, during which time he visited more than 90 libraries and archives in more than 50 cities (including Crakow, Olomuch and Prague). In his long career he examined and approximately 50,000 Gothic and Renaissance bindings; incredibly he made detailed notes and rubbings on most of them. Only a fraction of his work has been published: today the Kyriss Papers (which we have seen) are preserved in the Württembergische Landesbibliothek Stuttgart and contain more 20,000 leaves of rubbings. While his interest in the history of bookbindings was wide ranging, he focused largely on gothic bindings of Southern Germany. To a very large extent, the Sammlung Kyriss forms the main component of the epic online Einbanddatenbank (EBDB) project, along with the Sammlung Wolfenbuttel, BSB Munich, SB Berlin (including the Sammlung Paul Schwenke).

CONTENTS OF THE COLLECTION:

1. Nurnberger Klostereinbande der Jahre 1433 bis 1525. Inaugural-Dissertation. 1940. KYRISS'S DOCTORAL THESIS - NO COPY IN WORLDCAT - INSCRIBED BY KYRISS IN 1950.
2. Schriftdruck von Gutenberg. Offprint from Gutenberg-Jahrbuch 1942/43. Mainz, 1943. Original wrappers (front wrapper almost detached);
3."Zwei Geislinger Buchbinder des 15. Jahrhunderts." Extract from: Zeitschrift fur Wurtt. Landesgeschichte, vol. 8. 1944;
4. Beitrage zu Ausburger Buchbindern. Offprint from: Sammlung Bibliothekswissenschaftlicher Arbeiten, vol. 16, no 46. N.d.;
5. "Der Verzierte gotische Einband des deutschen Sprachgebeits." In: Zentralblatt fur Bibliothekwesen, vol. 63, nos. 5/6. 1949. SIGNED BY KYRISS and dated 1950;
6. Bookbindings in the Libraries of Prague. Offprint from: Studies in Bibliography, vol. 3. 1950-51;
7. Der Altdorfer Professor Georg Siegel als Buchersammler. Offprint from: Festschrift Eugen Stollreither. Erlangen, 1950;
8. "Berichtigungen zu Haebler: Rollen- und Plattenstempel des 16. Jahrhunderts. Extract from: Zentralblatt fur Bibliothekswesen, vol. 64, no. 3/4. 1950;
9. An Esslingen Binder of the Late Gothic Period. Offprint from: Speculum: A Journal of Mediaeval Studies, vol. 25, no. 1. 1950;
10. Wertvolle alte Einbande in Schweizerischen Bibliotheken. Offprint from: Mitteilungsblatt der Schweizerischen Bibliophilen-Gesellschaft, vol. 8, no. 1/2. 1951;
11. "Stuttgarter Buchbinder der Renaissancezeit." Extract from: Zentralblatt fur Bibliothekswesen, vol. 67, no. 5/6. 1953;
12. Katalog Historischer Einbande. Stuttgart, 1955. Original wrappers;
13. Der Verzierte Europaische Einband vor der Renaissance. Stuttgart, 1957;
14. "Franzosische Supralibros-Bande im Ausland." In: Borsenblatt fur den Deutschen Buchhandel, vol. 18, no. 81a. 1962;
15. "Wurttembergische Renaissancebande mit Rahmenplatten." In: Archiv fur Geschichte des Buchwesens, vol. 18. 1965.
16. "Schriftdruck auf Einbanden des 15. Jahrhunderts." In: Gutenberg-Jahrbuch, 1930. Wrappers (chipped). INSCRIBED TO "HERRN C. BROCKEMA" IN 1952;
17. [Einbande der Spatgotik und Renaissance im Stadtarchiv Feldkirch]. In: Die Kunstdenkmaler des politischen Bezirks Feldkirch. Vienna, 1958 (Osterreichische Kunsttopographie, 32) pp. 264-274. Original wrappers;
18. Ein Romischer Supra-Librosband des 18. Jahrhunderts in der Universitatsbibliothek Heidelberg." In: Heidelberger Jahrbucher, 1962, no. VI. Original wrappers;
19. "Zum Tode des Einbandforschers Prosper Verheyden." In: Zentralblatt fur Bibliothekwesen, 1949, 63:3/4;
20. "Johannes Zoll, ein Tubinger Buchbinder des 15. Jahrhunderts." In: Aus der Welt des Buches, [1950], no. 75.
21. "Wurttenbergische Buchbindereien aus spatgotischer Zeit." In: Zeitschrift für Württembergische Landesgeschichte vol. 9 (1950) p. 118-146.
22. "Stuttgarter Buchbinder von der Mitte des 16. bis zum Anfang des 19. Jahrhunderts: In: Zeitschrift für Württembergische Landesgeschichte vol. 12 (1953) p. 310-326.
23. Plaketten- und Kameen-Bande. In: Jahrbuch der Einbandkunst, no. 3/4 (1929/30). Wrappers. Publication identified in Kryss's hand inside front wrapper. THE FIRST PUBLICATION BY ERNST KYRISS ON BOOKBINDINGS.

PROVENANCE: From the library of Bernard H. Breslauer (Bibliotheca Bibliographica Breslaueriana, Christie's 2005, lot 1343).