Mass Bay

This archival, hand-sewn journal is made from 80 gsm Mohawk Superfine archival paper stitched with Irish linen thread in the linked pattern that dates back to the ancient Copts. This stitch allows the book to lay open easily at any page.

This book’s endbands are blue and white cotton, and its bookmark is goatskin.  Its spine is covered in goatskin, and its boards are wrapped in a 1945 map of Massachusetts Bay. 

Treasure binding began with monks in the 6^th Century who would encrust volumes with jewels. During the Renaissance, there was a resurgence in treasure binding. This is a contemporary revival of the treasure binding in which a lucky charm has been embedded in the cover of this book.  

The talisman in this journal is a mid-century transit token, good for a bus ride in America.  In 1945, because of war-time shortages, Boston proposed a major expansion to its elevated railway that would save gasoline for commuters. However, the end of the war eased fears about shortages, and the expanded service, for example connecting Boylston and Park Streets, was not realized until 1980, after the historic BERy had become the MBTA.  The best laid plans . . . eventually come to fruition.  Dream on.

This book is approximately 6 x 9” with more than 150 blank pages.