Course:LIBR548F/2010WT1/Title Page

The Title-Page

The title-page is a physical component of the book, containing paratextual information that introduces the reader to basic information about the publication. More simply defined, it is, “a separate page containing the title of the book, and not containing any of the text” (Smith 15). Title-pages may or may not list the author, editor, illustrator, translator, publisher and address or city of publication. They may bear illustrations, the printer’s mark, or decorative frames. Title-pages in the past have included tables of contents, introductions, and prefaces. (Smith 13) Usage and design of the title-page, as it is recognized today, developed during the production of incunables. During the first 50 years of printed books, printing technology introduced logistical and economic challenges to printers and booksellers. These challenges directly influenced the invention of the title-page, as a tool for protecting, identifying, and advertising books. However, paratextual information has migrated to and from the title-page since the age of manuscripts, when heading, title, author, scribe, date, location, and comments, such as prayers, were printed on the incipits and colophons of books. (Smith 30)

Development of the Title-Page

Manuscript books very rarely contained title-pages. (Smith 25-27) Expensive parchment may have deterred scribes from wasting space; (Howard 65) but title-pages may not have been necessary in the period before printing presses, when scribes recorded paratextual information in the incipit, (the first or introductory words of the text) and the colophon, (words following the end of the text). (Smith 25-27) The advent of printing presses significantly raised production costs, as type manufacturing and composition required printers to invest in materials and employ both skilled and unskilled labour. (Howard 40-43) In this setting, printers found it cost-effective to create many copies of the same typesetting. The increase in production meant that unsold books had to be stored and transported (Smith 18). Bookmakers added one or more blank pages in order to protect the text from being damaged or soiled between printing and binding. (Howard 66) (Steinberg 67). Printers soon began to print a title on the blank recto preceding the text (Febvre and Martin 84), enabling printers, booksellers, and transporters to identify works (Smith 21). The first instances of title-pages were simple, functioning basically as a label for identifying stacked texts. Modern bibliographers refer to these as either the “modest label” or the “label-title.” (Smith 21)

Printers also began to use the title-page as a space for advertising their publications. These were displayed in bookshop windows and doorframes, and on walls. To increase the advertising function, printers, who acted as publishers and booksellers simultaneously (Steinberg 67), began to include additional description and decoration on title-pages. By 1476, bookmakers were including poems and other introductory material. (Steinberg 69) By the end of the 15th century, the printer’s mark was moved from above the colophon at the end of the work to the title-page. The printer’s address was also included, as a means of increasing publicity. (Febvre and Martin 84) By the early decades of the 16th century, title-pages were crowded with writing that introduced the text, and printing information. During the 16th century, the design of the title-pages was relegated to artists and engravers. Eventually, the illustrations were moved to the first verso, opposite the title page, (Febvre and Martin 85) which is known today as the frontispiece (Howard 65).

Annotated Bibliography

Smith, Margaret. The Title Page: Its Early Development from 1460-1510. London: British Library, 2000.

Margaret Smith's bibliographic scholarly work is dedicated solely to the development of the title page during the incunable era. It is suitable for new and seasoned scholars of Book History. The first chapter provides a narrative overview of the development of the title-page. It introduces her theory, that the title-page is the product of the economic effects of the printing press technology, in an approachable manner. Smith then presents evidence, using bibiometric methods, that confirms or negates formerly accepted conclusions about the title-page. She dedicates entire chapters to periods of development, such as the blank page or the half-page. Smith's book is the most thorough study of this topic to date.

The Title-Page

Development of the Title-Page

Further Reading

Annotated Bibliography