Charles Lewis (1786–1836) was a prominent English bookbinder.

Life

Born in London, Lewis was fourth son of Johann Ludwig, a political refugee from

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

, and brother of

Frederick Christian Lewis Frederick Christian Lewis (1779–1856) was an English etcher, aquatint and stipple engraver, landscape and portrait painter and the brother of Charles Lewis (1786–1836). Life He studied under J. C. Stadler and in the schools of the Royal ...

and of

George Robert Lewis George Robert Lewis (1782–1871) was a versatile English painter of landscapes and portraits. Life The younger brother of Frederick Christian Lewis and of Charles Lewis the bookbinder, he was born in London on 27 March 1782. He studied under He ...

. In 1800, he was apprenticed to the leading bookbinder Henry Walther. After he had spent five years in the

forwarding department Bindery refers to a studio, workshop or factory where sheets of (usually) paper are fastened together to make books, but also where gold and other decorative elements are added to the exterior of books, where boxes or slipcases for books are made ...

, Walther refused his request to enter the finishing shop, and so Lewis practised fine work on his own account, into the small hours. On leaving Walther in 1807, Lewis worked as a journeyman in several other shops, finally setting up in business on his own account in

Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's London boroughs, 32 boroughs. Its name derives from the location of the original ...

. He later moved to premises in Denmark Court, and on to Duke Street, St. James's. With C. Kalthoeber he was employed by William Beckford on the

Fonthill Abbey Fonthill Abbey—also known as Beckford's Folly—was a large Gothic Revival country house built between 1796 and 1813 at Fonthill Gifford in Wiltshire, England, at the direction of William Thomas Beckford and architect James Wyatt. It was ...

library.

Thomas Frognall Dibdin Thomas Frognall Dibdin (177618 November 1847) was an English bibliographer, born in Calcutta to Thomas Dibdin, the sailor brother of the composer Charles Dibdin. Dibdin was orphaned at a young age. His father and mother died in 1780 while re ...

(Lord Spencer's librarian) was an admirer of his work and character, and recommended him to other bibliophiles. Lewis was foremost among the bookbinders of London by 1823 and employed 23 journeymen. Lord Spencer (the owner of the Althorp library) had employed him at least as early as 1814 and Dibdin's ''Biblitheca Spenceriana'' mentions 235 works (some being in more than one volume) as having bindings by him; Lewis must also have bound many later books for Lord Spencer which are outside the scope of the ''Bibliotheca Spenceriana''. Many of Dibdin's descriptions include remarks complimentary to Lewis.Lister, Anthony (1989) "The Althorp Library ... its Formation and Growth". In: ''Bulletin of the John Rylands University Library of Manchester''; vol. 71, no. 2, pp. 83-84 Lewis died of

apoplexy Apoplexy () refers to the rupture of an internal organ and the associated symptoms. Informally or metaphorically, the term ''apoplexy'' is associated with being furious, especially as "apoplectic". Historically, it described what is now known as a ...

on 8 January 1836. He was succeeded by his eldest son. Francis Bedford had lived with Lewis for some time, and carried on Lewis's style, which was in contrast to the more ornate school of

Robert Rivière Robert Riviere (30 June 1808 in London – 12 April 1882 in London) was a British bookbinder of Huguenot descent. Life Riviere was descended from a French family, who left their country on the revocation of the edict of Nantes. His father, Daniel ...

. According to Dibdin Lewis combined the taste of

Roger Payne Roger Searle Payne (January 29, 1935 – June 10, 2023) was an American biologist and environmentalist famous for his 1967 discovery (with Scott McVay) of whale song among humpback whales. Payne later became an important figure in the worldwid ...

with "a freedom of forwarding and squareness of finish very peculiar to himself"; he was also successful in book restoration. His main colours were buff or subdued orange for Russia bindings, and French grey for Morocco.

Notes

Attribution

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Charles 1786 births 1836 deaths English people of German descent Bookbinders