A fore-edge painting is a technique of painting on the edges of the pages of a book. The artwork can only be seen when the pages are fanned, as seen in the animation below. When the book is closed, you don’t see the image because it is hidden by the gilding (i.e., the gold leaf applied to the edges of the page).
According to Encyclopedia Britannica, fore-edge paintings first arose during the European Middle Ages but came to prominence during the mid-17th century to the late 19th century. Anne C. Bromer for the Boston Public Library writes, “Most fore-edge painters working for binding firms did not sign their work, which explains why it is difficult to pinpoint and date the hidden paintings.”
Thanks to the generous gifts from Anne and David Bromer and Albert H. Wiggin, the Boston Public Library holds one of the finest collections of fore-edge paintings in the United States. Most of the collection has been put online for the world to enjoy and features more than 200 high-resolution images; complete with additional videos, articles and information.
1. The causes, appearances, and effects of the
seasonal decay and decomposition of nature, 1837 by Robert Mudie
Courtesy of University of Iowa: Special Collections Archives
2. The Holy Bible
Split fore-edge painting
3. Letters of Lady Rachel Russell, 1801
by J. Mawman
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
4. Analysis of the Game of Chess, 1790
by François-André Danican Philidor
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
5. Characteristics of women, moral, political, and historical, v.2 1833
by Anna Jameson
Painting of Anne Hathaway’s Cottage
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
6. Speeches of Henry Lord Brougham, v.1 1838
by Henry Lord Brougham
A view of Philadelphia showing the Delaware
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
7. Jeanne d’Arc
Author Unknown
The People Of Orleans Greet Joan Of Arc
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
8. The rod and the gun, 1841
by James Wilson
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
9. Poems by the late William Cowper, Esq., v.2 1820
by William Cowper
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
10. The speeches of the right honorable William Pitt, v.2 1808
by William Pitt
George Washington and Benjamin Franklin
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
11. The causes, appearances, and effects of the
seasonal decay and decomposition of nature, 1837 by Robert Mudie
Courtesy of University of Iowa: Special Collections Archives
12. The poetical works of Thomas Moore, 1865
by Thomas Moore
View Of Enniscorthy, England
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
13. The lord of the isles, 1815
by Walter Scott
Carrick Castle In Argyll, Scotland
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
14. The world before the flood, 1819
by James Montgomery
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
15. The rambler, v.1 1825
by Samuel Johnson
Old Wych Street, London
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
16. The complete angler of Isaak Walton and Charles Cotton, 1835
by Izaak Walton
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
17. The Education of Henry Adams, 1918
by Henry Adams
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
18. Jerusalem delivered (Torquato Tasso), v.1 1797
by John Hoole
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
19. Oberon, 1798
by William Sotheby
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
20. The Holy Bible, 1811
St Paul’s Cathedral
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
21. The lay of the last minstrel, 1823
by Sir Walter Bart Scott
View of Kelso, Scotland
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
22. Paradise Lost, 1876
by John Milton
Milton Triptych
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
23. Latin and Italian poems of Milton, 1808
by John Milton
The Inn at Edmonton
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
24. Marmion, 1811
by Sir Walter Scott
Lindesfarne Abbey
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
25. The Poetical Works of Alexander Pope, 1863
by Alexander Pope
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
26. Poems by William Cowper, Esq., v.1 1808
by William Cowper
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
27. Select British poets, v.3 1824
Various Authors
Wimborne Minster
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
28. Rokeby, 1813
by Walter Scott
View of Barnard Castle
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
29. The causes, appearances, and effects of the
seasonal decay and decomposition of nature, 1837 by Robert Mudie
Courtesy of University of Iowa: Special Collections Archives
30. The curse of Kehama, 1812
by Robert Southey
Indian River Scene with Hindu Temple
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
31. Lalla Rookh, 1818
by Thomas Moore
Tyburn Turnpike, London
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
32. The lives of Dr. John Donne, Sir Henry Wotton, [etc.] 1824
by Izaak Walton
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
33. Poems by the late William Cowper, Esq., v.1 1820
by William Cowper
A View of Olney
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
34. The red true story book
by Andrew Lang and H. J. Ford
The Capture Of Joan Of Arc
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
35. The causes, appearances, and effects of the
seasonal decay and decomposition of nature, 1837 by Robert Mudie
Courtesy of University of Iowa: Special Collections Archives
36. Poems by the late William Cowper, Esq., v.2 1820
by William Cowper
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
37. Poems on several occasions, 1813
by Lord Edward Thurlow
A View of Dublin
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
38. The Holy Bible, v.2 1803
‘The Last Supper’
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
39. The Holy Bible, v.2 1795
The Mount Of Olives From The Slopes Of Zion
Courtesy of Boston Public Library
40. The anthologies, an extensive collection
of all compositions subsequent to the Liang dynasty
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