cartonnage (Q232)

A thick cover paper made by hand in a single sheet from pulp with very long fibres, and heavily sized with gelatine. It was often formed on sheets of textile that leave a clear impression of the woven textile on one or both surfaces. Case covers made from cartonnage were used in Italy from at least the 1480s through to the mid-nineteenth century. Sheets of cartonnage were also laminated with paste to create thicker and stiffer boards for books.