The Röllig family worked as bookbinders in Saxon Switzerland for several generations, during which they amassed a small but impressive collection of books. This collection spans a period of 150 years and provides an insight into the fate of a family of artisans working in the book trade, from the journeymen’s travels through Europe and the development of educated middle-class lifestyles to World War I. The collection is rounded off by 120 other documents that testify, for example, to the training that a bookbinder had to undergo, the advertising used to promote the family business, and the prevailing spirit of the times (e.g. a report on the first railway). These examples give a detailed impression of the path followed by a family of bookbinders through to modern times.

Photo: DNB, Emma Mamerow / Christine Hartmann

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Diary and photographs from the Röllig collection

Pagination

: Birth certificate from the Röllig collection …