Founded in 1923, Ateliers Babouot, based in Lagny-sur-Marne in the Seine-et-Marne region of France, specializes in the binding of works in very fine paper, but is best known as Gallimard's exclusive bookbinder for the prestigious Bibliothèque de la Pléiade, an association that dates back to the creation of the collection in 1931. This collection is instantly recognizable, with its 10.4 x 16.9 cm format, its 36 g/m² chamois bible paper and its 2 with its Garamond typeface, its leather cover with slightly curved spine gilded in 23-carat gold and its attractive white slipcase.
Before a Pléiade work is considered complete, it undergoes a meticulous three-week process in our century-old workshops, passing through the hands not of workers but of journeymen. Hélène Ladégaillerie, head of production at Ateliers Babouot, explains for the show Le Grand Tour de France Culture : "These are people who are going to be very meticulous and very fussy. Their eyes are as important as their hands."
The New Zealand sheepskins needed to make the strong, supple covers are carefully cut, inspected and repaired if necessary. Dyed in 11 different colors to match the book's content, these skins are then laminated to cardboard, and stamped with fine gold with the title, author and decorative fillets on the spine.
The bible paper signatures delivered by the printer in double head-and-foot signatures are folded, assembled, sewn with very fine textile threads, pressed with glue and only then separated in two. Prints are made on 36 g/m2 buff-colored bible paper, which can be stored without problem while waiting to be bound. Fifty years ago, Les Ateliers Babouot chose a site near the Marne river, a deliberately humid location, as this medium appreciates high humidity, which gives it flexibility and regularity.
We also glue the endpapers and muslin, and color the headband. Once bound, the book is bookmarked, its cover protected by rhodoid and placed in an elegant slipcase.
At every stage of the bookbinding process, the expertise of our craftsmen is omnipresent. In 2013, Les Ateliers Babouot, part of the Partenaires-Livres group, was awarded the Entreprise du patrimoine vivant label, a government label recognizing the excellence of exceptional craftsmanship.
