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Ottokar's Sceptre: What do these marks on the pages mean?

Seven
Member

#1 · Posted: 27 Jan 2012 06:33

I have a 1958 Methuen King Ottokar's Sceptre, and while reading it I noticed that, on the very bottom of p.15, it says: "King Ottokar 2" then on p.31 it says "King Ottokar 3" and finally on p.47 at the bottom it says "King Ottokar 4".

Can someone please explain why it says this?

jock123
Moderator

#2 · Posted: 27 Jan 2012 09:47

It's simply to help the printer when cutting and binding the pages to assemble the complete book.
Sometimes, if not written in words, you can see a sequence of printed stars or dots or lines (one star, two stars, three stars... etc.) which perform the same function. You'll find them in many books.

The pages are gathered into bundles (a bundle which is called a "signature" in book-binding), which are sewn together, and then several signatures may be sewn together (a "folio") after which they are bound in some other covering.

The marks (or in this case, words) tell the book-binder the order in which to assemble the signatures.

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