Stub binding

The 'stub binding' shown in the image is a is a form of binding in which the pages of print or manuscript are sewn to stubs of paper which are attached and make up the spine. The image shows the post disbinding stubbs which held the Baxter Treatises collection. In order to examine the manuscripts care notes were made prior to their disbinding from the stub. In the 19th century the Baxter manuscripts were gathered together into the binding, as they ranged in size spaces opened up for the ingress of dust. Further damage was caused when pages were cut to fit within the cover boards. The order and state of the manuscripts was carefully noted prior to their disbinding and conservation treatment.