Miniature books in the Chilson Collection

Please let us know if you find miniature books in the Herman P. Chilson Collection not shown in the image above. We know there are more.

“Miniature books are books measuring 10 centimeters or less in height and 10 cm. or less in width. A book exceeding 10 centimeters in its longest dimension is not a miniature book” (Library of Congress. Descriptive cataloging manual: B15; https://www.loc.gov/aba/publications/FreeDCM/DCM/B15.pdf; accessed 07/28/2025). The Miniature Book Society utilizes 3 inches instead of 10 centimeters (Miniature Book Society; https://mbs.org; accessed 10/01/2025).

Miniature books occupy an interesting place in the history of bookmaking. A few reasons for printing miniature books are to make books easier to carry in your pocket or reticule and easier to use discretely (Miniature Book Society; https://mbs.org; accessed 10/01/2025). The Chilson Collection is a great place to find book examples of the history of constructing books.

The books pictured above are:

Thomas, Peter, and Donna Thomas. Celia Fiennes: A Record of 17th Century Papermaking. Santa Cruz, CA: Peter & Donna Thomas, 1990. CHILSON COLLECTION TS1095.G7 C45 1990.

Hunter, Dard. Dard Hunter: A Short Biography. Santa Cruz, CA: Peter & Donna Thomas, 1989. CHILSON COLLECTION TS1098.H8 H87 1989.

Ford, Alla T., and Dick Martin. The Musical Fantasies of L. Frank Baum. Hong Kong: Ford Press, 1969. CHILSON COLLECTION PS3503.A923 Z65 1969.