Wear and Tear

Throughout the book there are signs of its age and usage, while we may not be able to infer much of how these damages occurred we can analyze them to understand how a book ages.

While this text is in decent condition, the most egregious damage is found in the first few pages as this text is missing the table of contents and pages 3-13. The loosened binding and weakened spine of the book show signs that these missing pages may have simply fallen out over time as the book's condition worsened. These missing pages can be read in the attached digitization of a later edition of the text here.

The majority of the text shows various signs of deterioration caused by possible improper storage and age. Such examples are that of Page 156 which like many pages are noticeably darked/browned with splotching, likely a sign of water damage. Other pages show signs of Foxing, a discoloration due to oxidation of impurities in the paper, such examples are seen on pages 105, 116, 181 and 217. Other noteworthy damage, wear or signs of use are on pages 227 which has been significantly and intentionally dog eared and page 157 which has minor pencil markings in the header.

With the damage described above, it is not possible to know who of the Fontaine family owned this text. Otherwise this text was likely for self education for a member of the Fontaine family.