History of the Book Trade
The evolution of the book, from classical antiquity up to the digital era.
This field includes manuscripts, books and archives from publishers and the book trade, printers and type foundries, antiquarian bookshops and auctioneers. The technical aspects of book production and the history of the book trade are at the focus here, with the emphasis on the Netherlands and the period after 1800.
The Book and Library History collection provides an outline of how the book evolved from classical antiquity right up to the digital era. The Allard Pierson has long collected literature on the field of bibliography. The Allard Pierson also manages archives and collections on the history of the book trade. Most of the material originates from the library of the Vereeniging ter bevordering van de belangen des Boekhandels (Association for Promoting the Book Trade), currently called Bibliotheek van het Boekenvak (Library of the Book Trade). This library was acquired on permanent loan in 1958.
The Bibliotheek van het Boekenvak (Library of the Book Trade), established by the booksellers J.L.C. Jacob and Frederik Muller in 1845, contains tens of thousands of books and other printed matter. It has been added to and expanded over the years with archives from publishers, printers, bookbinders, bookshops auction houses and antiquarian bookshops. The Allard Pierson also manages book trade catalogues published by publishers, bookshops, auction houses and antiquarian bookshops.
This collection field now takes up more than five kilometres of shelves, with periodicals, posters, company archives, monographs, type samples and more. The Book and Library History collection is closely linked to the Graphic Production and Design collection, which covers book production and design.
