Folio Stands in Victorian Homes

During the Victorian period and before, books were expensive and treated as valuable possessions. Most books were on the small size, as the price increased proportional to the size. As a result, etchings and drawings were small, and details were difficult to make out, especially in depictions with a wider view. In addition, rooms were relatively dim: gas lighting in Victorian homes was only a fraction as bright as modern electric light. Books specifically written to discuss visual subjects, along with the corresponding representation of those subjects, were often reproduced in limited production of Folios, or oversized, unbound books. A book, such as Mr. Vanderbilt’s House and Collection, by Earl Strahan. Readers could pull out the etched plates individually, bring them closer to a light source, and be able to see the detail in a way that a regular book could not compare. Many of these plates were also colorized.