Description

The Norwich Jubilee (1859) – First Edition Printed on Mummy Paper

A book printed on pages made from Egyptian mummy wrappings

A 19th-century bibliophilic and industrial curiosity.

This book traces the festivities of the bicentenary of Norwich in 1859 through its speeches, parades and local archives.

Published in Norwich (Connecticut, USA) in 1859 by John W. Stedman, this work commemorates the bicentennial of the town's founding. Beyond its local historical interest, this volume serves as a witness to an unusual 19th-century papermaking practice: printing on paper manufactured from Egyptian mummy wrappings (mummy paper).

The History of "Mummy Paper" and Historical Proof of this Volume's Paper Origin

During the 19th century, faced with a shortage of linen and cotton rags in North America, paper mills such as the Chelsea Manufacturing Company in Norwich imported Egyptian mummy wrappings to recycle into paper pulp. The Norwich Jubilee is one of the few documented printed witnesses of this production.

Mummy paper is made from the linen used for funerary wrappings. The earliest record of printing on genuine "mummy paper" appears on a broadside published in 1858 in Norwich to announce the town's 200th jubilee.

A period document, the paper mill's promotional broadside, explicitly confirms this unusual origin:

"This paper is manufactured by the Chelsea Manufacturing Company, Greenville, Connecticut, the largest paper mill in the world. The raw material used in its manufacture comes from Egypt, having been taken from ancient tombs where it served to embalm mummies."

Copies of this broadside were printed and distributed during the parade on September 7, 1859, celebrating Norwich's 200th anniversary, by members of the Chelsea Manufacturing Company.

For its part, The Norwich Jubilee, a souvenir book published by John W. Stedman in 1859, boasted of being a product entirely made in Norwich and specified that the paper on which it was printed came directly from the Chelsea mills.

Since the book was printed by the same printer (John W. Stedman) during the exact same period as the broadside, it is certain that it was also printed on mummy paper.

This book is more likely than any other to have been printed on this type of paper, constituting one of the very few surviving printed testimonies of this practice.

It is the only book whose paper origin from Egyptian mummy wrappings is historically proven.

Binding Variants at Publication

Upon its release in 1859, the book was issued in three distinct bindings:

A deluxe gilt leather binding (crafted by binders Lewis and Elisha Edwards) for subscribers seeking a prestigious volume (only two copies known).

A publisher's cloth binding (embossed cloth) for general sale and use.

A more limited distribution in paper covers/wrappers.

This copy features the original 1859 text block re-bound at a later date in a sturdy full red cloth (percaline) binding with gilt lettering on the spine, retaining its original marbled edges and reinforced with modern endpapers at the front and back.

Technical Specifications & Condition

Author / Publisher: Compiled, printed and published by John W. Stedman

Full Title: The Norwich Jubilee. A Report of the Celebration at Norwich, Connecticut, on the Two Hundredth Anniversary of the Settlement of the Town, September 7th and 8th, 1859

Place and Date of Publication: Norwich, Conn., 1859

Edition: First edition in a later binding

Interior Condition: Excellent state of preservation. Very fresh interior. Contains the original folding color map in perfect condition, as well as all full-page lithographs and engravings.

Binding: Full red publisher's cloth (percaline), later binding, gilt title on spine, original marbled edges.

Paper Particularity: Original paper made from rag pulp and Egyptian mummy wrappings (natural cream/off-white tone), offering a sharp visual contrast with the modern white restoration endpapers.

I slipped a copy of the poster from that time into the book.