De Anglorum Gentis Origine Disceptatio is part of the Thomas Jefferson Collection on permanent display in the Great Hall of the Library of Congress. Jefferson’s collection was acquired by LC in 1815, after the collection (then housed in the  Capitol Building) was set ablaze the year prior. On Christmas Eve of 1851, a majority of Jefferson's collection was destroyed in another blaze, including Jefferson’s original copy of De Anglorum. This text was pulled from another collection in the library, to recreate Jefferson’s original catalogue.

De Anglorum was written by English linguist, Robert Sheringham (1602 -1678) on the origins on the English language and people. 

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It was common practice for the Government Printing Office to rebind books in red buckram cloth case bindings, to indicate ownerships and to create a more cohesive appearance of library collections. The goal of this treatment was to rebind the book in a historically accurate style. Additionally, the Jefferson collection will be moved to a new location in the Visitor’s Center in 2027. This book was selected as part of an initiative to improve the overall appearance of the  collection. 

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Treatment Overview​

• The unoriginal case binding was removed and the book was disbound. 

  The loose gatherings were surface cleaned, and then guarded with a medium weight Japanese tissue.

• The textblock was resewn on five raised cords, and then rounded and backed. The textblock was lined with a kozo tissue reversibility layer, airplane linen, and two layers of western paper. 

• Blue and ivory two color front bead endbands were sewn onto the book. 

• Boards were shaped and the raised cord slips were laced though.

• The book was covered in brown calf, and then tooled, to mimic a traditional late seventeen century English binding. A red leather spine label was stamped in gilt and adhered to the second panel of the spine.

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