halfbands (Q749)

Raised bands found between the raised bands created by sewing supports and of a smaller size. Halfbands were originally created by single sewing supports (genuine halfbands) placed between larger double sewing supports on 15th-century German bindings, but by the 1480's the single supports began to be replaced by false bands (false halfbands), a practice found also in Italy in the mid-16th century.