How Books Were Made

Pictorial Webster's: Inspiration to Completion from John Carrera on Vimeo.

In the summer of 1995, bookmaker Johnny Carrera of Quercus Press found a tattered Webster’s 1898 International Dictionary under his grandfather’s favorite chair. He was fascinated with the thousands of engravings and spent the next decade of his life remaking the book using a Linotype machine.

The result is the gorgeous handmade Pictorial Webster. It’s not just a book. It’s an artwork. If you don’t have a spare $3,500 to buy the deluxe full leather book, you can still get the great unwashed version for $23 at Amazon.

If you see only one video clip today, let this be it. Then check out the official Pictorial Webster’s project page.

From the discovery of the 1898 International Dictionary to linotyping the entries to printing the last print on the vandercook to cutting the fingertabs of the deluxe edition, this video gives a quick overview of the process of creating the Pictorial Webster's fine press edition.