DISCUSSION – Page Edge Preferences

The other day, I was reading a post over at The Modern Witch’s Bookshelf, and the term Deckle Edges rose to the surface. I had never heard the term, but after a quick google, I saw that I definitely had seen deckle edges before. 

That got me thinking about the different treatments of page edges, and what I thought about each, and which I preferred. And now I want to know your thoughts.

Deckle Edges

You’ve seen these ones, right? They’re the ones that look all old-timey and imperfect. Today, this type of page edge is manufactured, but before the 19th century, most books had this deckle edge. The paper-making process left every single page with a rough edge. Once the book was complete, the deckle could be trimmed off, but this increased the cost of the book, so most of the time, it just wasn’t bothered with.

I’ve personally only seen this a few times, and honestly, I’m not a fan. Sure, it looks cool, especially if the book is set in a time when it would have had this kind of edge, but it’s cumbersome. You ever tried casually flipping through something with deckle edge?

Gilded/Painted Edges

Until recently, it was most common to see gold gilding on page edges. Once the book is bound, the pages are sanded and then have gold leaf applied to it. Sometimes the pages were even sanded with a beveled edge, allowing more surface for the shiny gold to show through. More recently, inked pages are becoming more common. I can’t say for sure, but I would guess ink is cheaper than gold leaf? That, and people probably like seeing colors other than white and gold.

This I can get behind. Again, I haven’t seen too many examples. The only ones that come to mind is Six of Crows, and the anniversary Harry Potter editions. Until I forget what color normal page edges are, I’m all for this.

Image from paperhouses.co

Fore-Edge painting

This is a painting, usually some kind of scene, applied to the longest edge of the pages. Often, the scene could not be seen unless the pages were fanned out just a little, and then the picture would take form.

I’ve only seen this one time. It was for a book called Cheese Monkeys: A Novel in Two Semesters. It wasn’t so much a scene that was painted on the edges, but a message. But the coolest part about it was that the message changed if you flipped the book upside down. I’m good with this, too.

Clean cut, standard

You’ll forgive me if I don’t include an image of a standard book. If you’re reading this post, there’s probably a book right beside you. Pick it up. Look at it. There you go.

So, what do you think about these different options for page edges? Love them? Hate them? Did I miss any?

Fun fact about this post: I also found whispers of something called uncut pages, where the pages are literally not cut all the way on one side. I didn’t include it because it sounds more like a publisher error than a choice.