Ex-libris: an integrative review

ABSTRACT

Introduction:

The present work is an integrative review on current studies of the ex-libris, mark of provenance and ownership of books that represent, through images and/or inscriptions, the owners of these devices.

Objective:

To present an integrative review of current ex-libris studies.

Methodology:

With regard to this type of bibliographic research, it presents the verification and analysis of studies carried out on the ex- libris in Brazilian and international journals, between 2015 and 2022, using documents from journals indexed in the Portal de Periódicos, of the Coordination of Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (Capes) and in the Google Scholar search engine.

Results:

The search in the databases resulted in 14 scientific articles that met all the established criteria. We present the search results in full for better visualization of the data that will be discussed.

Conclusion:

It concludes that the ex-libris is a research object with multidisciplinary possibilities, relating different fields of knowledge, including for pedagogical purposes. The results also demonstrate the relevant presence of Brazil in current studies on this subject, however, the scarce amount of recovered documents also reflects the limitation of scientific production on this object.

KEYWORDS:
Ex-libris; Provenance marks; Ownership marks; Integrative review.

RESUMO

Introdução:

O presente trabalho trata-se de uma revisão integrativa sobre estudos atuais do ex-libris, marca de proveniência e propriedade de livros que representam, por meio de imagem e/ou inscrições, os donos desses dispositivos.

Objetivo:

Apresentar revisão integrativa sobre estudos atuais do ex-libris.

Metodologia:

No que concerne a esse tipo de pesquisa bibliográfica, apresenta a verificação e análise de estudos realizados acerca do ex-libris em periódicos brasileiros e internacionais, entre 2015 e 2022, utilizando documentos provenientes de revistas indexadas no Portal de Periódicos, da Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (Capes) e no buscador Google Acadêmico.

Resultados:

A busca nas bases resultou em 14 artigos científicos que atenderam a todos os critérios estabelecidos. Apresentamos os resultados da busca na íntegra para melhor visualização dos dados que virão a ser discutidos.

Conclusão:

Conclui que o ex-libris é um objeto de pesquisa com possibilidades multidisciplinares, relacionando diferentes campos do conhecimento, inclusive para fins pedagógicos. Os resultados também demonstram a relevante presença do Brasil em estudos atuais sobre essa temática, entretanto, a escassa quantidade de documentos recuperados reflete, ainda, a limitação da produção científica sobre esse objeto.

PALAVRAS-CHAVE
Ex-libris; Marcas de proveniência; Marcas de propriedade; Revisão integrativa.

1 INTRODUCTION

Ownership marks are probably as old as human history, appearing since the prehistoric period through cave paintings. Its study reveals information about the peoples who left their marks on everyday life, cultures and memories. Over the centuries, these marks have evolved, thus enabling the representation of more complex notions, as highlighted by Ginsburg (1989). The ex-libris are an example of this evolution of human traits and marks.

Ex-libris are small stamps, commonly found on the inner face of the book, accompanying names, initials, ornaments, coat of arms, monograms or illustrations commissioned by the book’s owner (BEZERRA, 2006). More than a status symbol, the ex- libris have a curious relationship with book owners, since, as Bezerra (2006, p. 129) clarifies, these miniature works of art, “when pasted on the book, represent a little of the soul of the one who imagined them.”

The book as an object and its characteristics is one of the fields of study of Librarianship and Information Science, as it covers concepts of culture, document, preservation and information. However, the knowledge of ownership marks, such as the ex-libris, is still quite select and the scientific production on this subject can be considered small. Thus, when questioning the potential of studies on ex-libris as an object of research in the area, we also seek to carry out a dialogue with other areas in which this theme is studied.

From these reflections, the objective of this research is to identify the most recent productions on the ex-libris in national and international scientific publications. In this sense, we present, through an integrative review, the studies carried out on the ex-libris in Brazilian and foreign journals, between the years 2015 and 2020, using documents from journals indexed in the Portal of Periodicals of the Coordination of Improvement Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) and in the Google Scholar search engine.

2 LITERARY REVIEW

The ex-libris is a provenance mark that denotes ownership. It is often presented in the form of a stamp, affixed between the first pages of a book. This ownership seal can feature images, phrases or just the name of the owner, be it a person or organization. According to Bertinazzo (2012), the word ex-libris comes from the Latin ex libris and means “from the books of…” or “among the books of…”, characterizing itself as a kind of signature of the owner of that book. This mark indicates not only the ownership of the book, but the choice of its art or frase reveals information about its owner, therefore, representing him.

Although its origin is not specified, predecessors of the ex-libris are found since antiquity, where even before the appearance of the book in the form of a codex, its best-known form today, engravings were already used as a marking of possession. According to Bezerra (2006, p. 130), when “searching for support in Archeology, we will have information on an Egyptian box lid, made of baked clay, enameled in pale blue, which served to keep papyrus and parchments”. This plaque, belonging to the library of Pharaoh Amenhotep III who reigned in 1400 BC, is an early example of the desire to mark ownership over informational material, serving as a precedent for the property marks that appeared later.

Among its predecessors are also bricks and clay slabs discovered at Nineveh that contained the same cuneiform symbol, part of the Ashurbanipal Library in 600 BC, and tablets with the effigy of Emperor Frederick I the Barbarian, dated 1188 and of Bavarian origin. Later, when the book already had the codex format, made with parchment sheets, kept between heavy wooden boards and produced by copyists and illuminators in the Middle Ages, ownership marks such as signatures and initials became more common (BERTINAZZO, 2012).

It is observed that the ex-libris appears at the same time as records of knowledge. As explained by Bertinazzo (2012, p. 41), the “History of the ex libris accompanies the History of the Book and that of Engraving”. However, its consolidation in fact would Only occur at the end of the Renaissance, with the emergence of the typographic book and printing, perfected by Gutenberg in the 15th century. It is from this period, mid-1400s, that the first ex-libris in its most recognizable form, small papers with an engraving stamped and pasted on the first pages of a book, appeared in Germany and other European countries (BERTINAZZO, 2012).

The emergence of the printing press lowered the cost of books, which were previously copied by hand, so that the ex-libris began to give them a new value,

[...] a means of mass reproduction of images had just been discovered in the West, so had the book, and there was a need to designate its belonging. Result: the creation of the ex libris. Thus, after some time, small rectangles of paper with a stamp printed to mark books, with the name or monogram of the owner and the expression 'from the books of...' in Latin, the universal language, started to be pasted on the books. (BERTINAZZO, 2012, p. 56).

Ex-libris are traditionally produced using engraving techniques, due to their easy reproduction in large numbers. Among the first engravings is xylography, an art that predates the press, since it is “linked to the image, and not to the letter, replacing hand-painted miniatures, before printed texts with movable types took the place of manuscripts” (BERTINAZZO, 2012, p. 43). Known as relief engraving, in traditional woodcuts a matrix is created with the art, and a graphic ink is passed over its surface with a rubber or leather roller. Afterwards, this matrix is pressed onto the paper (BERTINAZZO, 2012).

During the Renaissance, metal engraving was invented, which became the most used until the 18th century, however after 1800 metal plates, due to their high cost, gradually disappeared, being replaced by top woodcuts, which, in addition to having more refined details, it is high enough to be printed at the same time as the text, making the process faster and more economical (BERTINAZZO, 2012).

From the 19th century onwards, the book became more accessible, expanding a little more the right to read and the personal possession of these objects. At that time the first studies on the ex-libris appeared, such as the book Les ex libris français by A. Poulet-Malassis, published in 1874 (BEZERRA, 2006). Around 1900, photogravure was invented, reducing the manual work required by ex-libris, making it more accessible to different social groups and increasing the expansion of exlibris. While on the one hand such mechanization can reduce its artistic aspect for some, on the other hand it allows a wider range of subjects for illustration. In the 20th century the classic style of the ex-libris is taken over by Art Nouveau,

A progressive and disturbing spatiality runs through the drawing according to certain lines of force, also registering small scenes separated from the central motif, profusely decorated, investing in an organicity that, at first, presents us with chaos, to gradually reveal its logic. (BERTINAZZO, 2012, p. 65).

As exposed, the ex-libris is a property mark, serving as a representation of the owner of a book. It is common to accompany names, initials, ornaments and/or illustrations that represent the owner of the book, being commissioned by them. Several book collectors and owners of private libraries have their personal ex-libris and use it in their collections, leaving their mark. Some of these ex-libris belong to illustrious people, making the books that carry this symbol a rare or, at the very least, valuable object. However, more than a symbol of rarity, the ex-libris have a curious relationship with book owners, since, according to Bezerra (2006, p. 129), these miniature works of art “when pasted into the book, represent a little of the soul of the one who imagined them.”

In Brazil, the ex-libris took a while to appear compared to European countries due to the late establishment of the press. However, antecedents of the ex-libris can already be found from the 18th century, in colonial times, where even with the prohibition of the press, engraving techniques were already carried out in the country - mostly of a religious content:

The colonial engraving that represented Brazil also drank from the source linked to the performance of the Society of Jesus and the advent of the press. Some Jesuit brothers dedicated themselves to the production of: books, pamphlets, prints of saints, capital letters, engravings for frontispieces, woodcuts and vignettes, however, with restrictions imposed by the metropolis itself (RODRIGUES, 2018, p. 35).

One of the pioneer studies on the subject in the country is the book Ex libris, written by Manuel Esteves and published in 1954. In it, the author explains that the first ex-libris in Brazil was created in the 18th century in Minas Gerais, marking the possession of the books by Manuel de Abreu Guimarães (ESTEVES, 1954, apudBEZERRA, 2006). In 1940, the Sociedade de Amadores Brasileiros de Ex-Libris was created and, in the following years, exhibitions of collectors of ex-libris were organized, representing the interest in this subject in the country, which was gradually growing (BEZERRA, 2006). More books on the subject were published after Esteves' work, such as Ex-Libris, by Plinio Martins Filho, in 2008, and Ex Libris: small object of desire, by Stella Maris de Figueiredo Bertinazzo, in 2012. Ex-libris and its enthusiasts continued until the 1960s and 1970s, however, when mechanical reproduction techniques were introduced and there was a lack of interest in the current artistic style, this practice began to fall into disuse.

Studying the ex-libris leads us to investigate memory trajectories that accompany the books, especially collectors’ personal stories and their passions, often represented in ownership marks as artistic and cultural manifestations. In addition, by going through the paths taken by these devices, through scientific production we can follow a rich field of study whose academic research has much to contribute to cultural history.

3 METHOD

This study is a bibliographic review, a type of research that, through bibliographic sources, gathers research results from several authors, aiming at the theoretical foundation of a given topic (ROTHER, 2007). Among the types of studies of this nature, we highlight narrative and systematic reviews, which differ due to the methodology used. While narrative reviews do not explicitly present the methodology applied, systematic reviews are prepared “with methodological rigor” (ROTHER, 2007), detailing each stage of their implementation.

Within the umbrella of systematic reviews is the integrative review, a more specific category that aims to generate an overview of a given phenomenon through the summary of published literature. A well-structured integrative review presents the current state of science, contributing to the development of new research and practices in the area. This is possible due to the scope of the aforementioned review, which allows the inclusion of experimental, non-experimental, theoretical and empirical research, with the purpose of understanding a phenomenon in a more complete way (WHITTEMORE; KNAFL, 2005).

This method comes from Evidence-Based Practice (EBP), “an approach focused on clinical care and teaching based on knowledge and on the quality of evidence” (SOUZA; SILVA; CARVALHO, 2010, p. 102). At PBE, scientific and professional studies are related, aiming at the construction of knowledge that helps in decision making, incorporating research of recent and quality evidence. In this way, the integrative review allows a professional in a given area to keep up to date with the scientific knowledge of their field. While it has emerged in the field of Health, its applicability in other areas is convenient. Botelho, Cunha and Macedo (2011), for example, highlight the incorporation of integrative review methods in applied social sciences.

Cooper (1998) conceptualizes the integrative review in five steps: 1) problem formulation; 2) data collection; 3) evaluation of the collected data; 4) analysis and interpretation; and 5) presentation of results. Whittemore and Knafl (2005) expand on the structure left by Cooper, seeking to update the steps to better meet the specific needs of the integrative review. According to the authors, Cooper's original steps do not correspond to the challenges encountered in combining several data sources. Thus, they propose as steps: 1) problem identification; 2) literature search; 3) data evaluation; 4) data analysis.

Based on the methods mentioned by the authors mentioned above, Mendes, Silveira and Galvão (2008) distinguish six steps to carry out the integrative review: 1) identification of the theme and selection of the hypothesis or research question; 2) establishment of criteria for inclusion and exclusion of studies; 3) definition of the information to be extracted from the selected studies; 4) evaluation of selected studies; 5) interpretation of results; and 6) presentation of the review in a synthesis of knowledge.

In view of this, the question that will guide the research is first defined. Clear identification of the problem is necessary so that the next steps can be carried out properly. With the problem determined, it is also possible to make the objective of the review explicit. In this phase, it is determined which studies will be included, how to identify them and what information will be collected during the evaluation (MENDES; SILVEIRA; GALVÃO, 2008). With the research question defined, the next phase deals with the literature search, commonly performed in databases. At this stage, it is up to the formulation of well-defined research strategies, so that the integrative review presents more accurate results. Ideally, all relevant literature on a given subject should be included in the review (WHITTEMORE; KNAFL, 2005), however it is understood that there are limitations. At this stage, the sampling criteria are also determined, defined according to the guiding question. For the validation of the research, transparency regarding this process is recommended. Researchers, therefore, must document all decisions made during this step in their methodology, including the terms used in the search, the databases selected, and the inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Once the articles are retrieved, it is necessary to identify the relevant data. In this third phase of the integrative review, the objective was to “organize and summarize the information in a concise manner, forming a database of easy access and management” (MENDES; SILVEIRA; GALVÃO, 2008, p. 762). Therefore, it was necessary to use a data collection instrument previously prepared, keeping in mind the research objectives and the object of study. Determining the quality of the data collected is complex. It is common to choose published and peer-reviewed research, as it is understood that these publications have gone through a long process to determine their excellence and veracity.

The collected data were used in the fourth phase, the critical analysis of the included studies. At this stage, the studies collected are analyzed in detail and critically. Therefore, it is important that the data collected in the previous step are properly sorted, categorized and summarized. Whittemore and Knafl (2005) also include at this point the reduction, presentation and comparison of the data collected.

After analyzing the collected data, it was time to discuss the results, the fifth phase of the integrative review. In this, the results of the critical evaluation are compared to the theoretical reference raised, presenting possible knowledge gaps and delimiting new topics for future studies (SOUZA; SILVA; CARVALHO, 2010).

Once this was done, the integrative review passed to its sixth and final phase, the presentation of the work in a clear and complete way, allowing the reader to evaluate the results in a critical and direct way. Results can be presented in tables, graphs and diagrams. Ideally, the results should capture the chosen topic in depth, in order to contribute to a new understanding of the researched phenomenon (WHITTEMORE; KNAFL, 2005).

In view of this, the methodology presented here was applied to carry out the review of published articles on ex-libris. As for data collection, scientific articles published in journals from different areas in the last seven years were selected, that is, a time frame from 2015 to the first half of 2022. As this research also covers international journals, the languages chosen for data collection were Portuguese, English and Spanish.

The terms “ex libris” and “bookplates” were used as descriptors during the search. As inclusion criteria, we chose: a) scientific articles, and b) appearance of descriptors in the title, abstract or keywords. As for the exclusion criteria, we discarded documents: a) duplicates, that is, documents that appeared in both bases; b) articles that did not have the descriptors in the title, abstract or keywords; c) works that included the descriptors, however it was not a study where the ex-libris was the object of research; and d) works published in journals that had the ex-libris as a focus, however they were not of a scientific nature. The survey results are presented and discussed below.

4 RESULTS

Applying the aforementioned phases to the elaboration of an integrative review, this research begins with the following guiding question: what are the most recent national and international scientific productions, indexed in the CAPES Periodicals Portal and in the Google Scholar search engine, on the former? libris? Due to the study of the ex-libris covering different disciplines (in the fields of Information Science, Bibliography, History and Art), multidisciplinary databases were chosen, thus seeking not to stick to just one perspective.

To this end, articles that focused on the study of the ex-libris were considered, excluding book reviews and chapters, articles not indexed in scientific journals and articles that mention the ex-libris, but do not carry out an in-depth study on the subject. The Capes Journal Portal was chosen due to its nature as a virtual library, housing scientific productions from Brazil and abroad in more than 130 reference bases. Google Scholar, in turn, was chosen to fill the gap of journals that are not indexed in the Portal.

A table was created with the collected data, organized by the following descriptors: authors, article title, journal, year, language, keywords. Titles, abstracts, keywords and, in some cases, the entire documents were read. Some results coincided in both bases, however, only articles published in scientific journals, and which had free access were selected. Frame 1 presents the results obtained according to the index used and the search strategy.

Frame 1
Articles retrieved by database

Database	Descriptor	Results
Capes	Ex libris	4
	Bookplates	1
Google Acadêmico	Ex libris	7
	Bookplates	2

Source: survey data.

The search in the databases resulted in 14 scientific articles (Frame 2) that met all the established criteria. From the CAPES Journal Portal, 5 articles were found that met the selection criteria. All 5 selected articles have free access and are not part of any subscription provided by the Portal. The 9 articles retrieved through Google Scholar are also freely accessible and meet the criteria determined by this research.

We present the search results in full for better visualization of the data that will be discussed.

Frame 2
Articles recovered after delimitation

Authors	Title	Journal	Language	Keywords	Publication
KAJZER, D.	Ex-libris in Slovene Primary Schools	Ex-librist: International Journal of Ex- libris	English	Ex-libris. Primary School. Art Education Classes. Exhibitions of Children’s Ex- libris.	2021
ROMANENKOVA, J.; BRATUS, I.; MYIKHALCHUK, V.; GUNKA, A.	Lvov Ex-Libris School as the Traditions Keeper of the Intaglio Printing Techniques in the Ukrainian Graphic Arts at the Turn Of The XXth And XXIth Centuries	Inclusiones	English	Ex-libris. Printmaking. Etching. Mezzotint. Aquatint. Drypoint. Intaglio printing techniques.	2021
ROMANENKOVA, J.; BRATUS, I.; KUZMENKO, H.	Ukrainian Ex Libris at the End of the 20th Century and the Beginning of the 21st Century as an Instrument of the Intercultural Dialogue	Agathos	English	Printmaking. Ex libris. Bookplate. Engraving. Etching.	2021
O'HAGAN, L.	Social Posturing in the Edwardian	The Book Collector	English	n/a	2020
	Bookplate, 1901- 1914
DELLA FLORA CORTES, M.; IGANSI NUNES, J. F.	Ex-líbris: objetos e documentos	Anais: humanidades digitais	Portuguese	Ex-líbris. Marcas de propriedade bibliográfica. Memória. Documento.	2020
DELLA FLORA CORTES, M.; IGANSI NUNES, J. F.	EX-LÍBRIS: Formas Culturais de Memória	Revista de Ciências Humanas e Sociais	Portuguese	Ex-líbris. Memória. Rastros. Mediador social.	2020
YEREGUI, M. T. S.	Ex libris tradicionales, oralidad y ladrones de libros	Boletín de Literatura Oral	Spanish	Ex libris tradicional. Descripción Bibliográfica. Música impresa. Registro bibliográfico. Oralidad.	2019
DELLA FLORA CORTES, M. et al.	Ex-líbris: a economia patrimonial	Revista Eletrônica Ventilando Acervos	Portuguese	Ex-líbris. Patrimônio cultural. Colecionismo. Documento	2019
DELLA FLORA CORTES, M.; IGANSI NUNES, J. F.	Ex-Líbris: a memória de uma técnica	RELACult - Revista Latino- Americana de Estudos em Cultura e Sociedade	Portuguese	Cultura. Ex- Líbris. Memória. Cultura visual. Identidade.	2019
KAHRAMANOĞLU, S.	Bookplate Artists & Material Culture	The IJournal: Student Journal of the Faculty of Information	English	Bookplates. Ex- libris. Canadian. Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library. Art movements. Material culture. History.	2018
O'HAGAN, L.	Towards a multimodal ethnohistorical approach: a case study of bookplates	Social Semiotics	English	Multimodality. Ethnohistory. Edwardian. Bookplate. Inscriptions. Class.	2018
SILVESTRE, M. C. R.	Análise sobre a ocorrência de ex- líbris no acervo bibliográfico raro da Biblioteca Pedro Aleixo, da Câmara dos Deputados	Cadernos de Informação Jurídica	Português	Biblioteca Pedro Aleixo. Acervo bibliográfico raro. Ex-líbris. Câmara dos Deputados, Brasil. Biblioteca. Obras raras.	2017
MULIN, R. B.	Ex-Líbris: a desconhecida	Revista Brasileira de	Portuguese	Ex-líbris. Bookplates.	2017
	arte, tão antiga como o próprio livro	Biblioteconomia e Documentação		Dürer, Albrecht. Biblioteca George Alexander. Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie. Sresnewsky, Igor.
BARRANCO, F. G.	A belonging mark: Handwritten ex libris	International Journal of Library and Information Science	English	Belonging marks. Ex libris. Handwritten ex libris. Stamps. Fire marks. Antique book. Catalogued index.	2017

Source: survey data.

The work Ex-libris in Slovene Primary Schools, portrays the role of the ex-libris in art classes in elementary school in Slovenia. According to the author, children's ex-libris have a strong presence in the country's education, so that more than ten exhibitions of these artistic works have been held since 2011 (KAJZER, 2021). The author notes that ex-libris is an art form that allows children to express their personal identity. This manifestation is carried out through the artistic language that is portrayed in the molds of the ex-libris printing techniques. In this way, the art teacher teaches ex-libris creation techniques to children, which results in an artistic object that reflects this relationship between student and mentor.

In Lvov Ex-Libris School as the Traditions Keeper of the Intaglio Printing Techniques in the Ukrainian Graphic Arts at the Turn Of The XXth And XXIth Centuries, the object is the ex-libris and its role in the Llov school of engraving in Ukrainian contemporary art. Romanenkova et al (2021) comment that engraving is one of the most professional segments of Ukrainian art, however its traditional process is at risk of decline due to the popularization of digital art and modern printing techniques. They also point out the different ex-libris artistic schools in Ukraine and their most relevant artists. They highlight the Llov school and its traditional ex-libris. This school has its origins in the 1990s, and its artists are known abroad among collectors and exlibrists in general. Artists of the Llov school use a variety of printing techniques, but the authors of the work choose to emphasize intaglio printing, better known as metal engraving. They conclude that the Llov school of ex-libris and engravings is characterized by its polystylism and the use of metal printing and its different techniques, which must be preserved as a significant element of the country's culture.

Ukrainian Ex Libris at the End of the 20th Century and the Beginning of the 21st Century as an Instrument of the Intercultural Dialogue presents modern ex-libris collections as a significant element of Ukrainian printmaking (ROMANENKOVA et al, 2021). The authors trace the history of the new ex-libris starting in 1991, when the country begins the creation of its first ex-libris memorial. It is also during this period that associations and clubs related to the theme are created. As an illustration of the growing interest in ex-libris in the country, ex-libris competitions were held in the mid-1990s. It is notable that the enthusiasm for ex-libris art comes from artists who seek to create works that reflect their culture. The authors point out that currently the ex-libris goes beyond a mere element of the book, becoming a rich field of artistic exhibitions. The empirical research of the work is carried out on the artistic movement called Kiev School, and the authors raise the main artists of the generation, as well as their ex-libris printing techniques. They conclude that despite their particularities, all these artists reflect the elements of the Ukrainian ex-libris as a unique object of art and intercultural communication, becoming an important expression of their national identity.

In the article Social Posturing in the Edwardian Bookplate, 1901-1914, O'Hagan (2020) explains how the ex-libris, symbol of the identity representation of its owner, can be used as a performative device. The author presents, through examples from the Edwardian era, how the ex-libris was also used as an object capable of creating a new identity and social status for its owner. Social posture was important to 20th century British society and, therefore, the book - an object that symbolizes knowledge, power and status - was used for these means. Among the exlibristic elements, which could falsify social position, were the false family coats of arms, since heraldry had a strong presence in the ex-libris since its creation in the 15th century. Thus, the author concludes the presence of the ex-libris as a strong element of social distinction in the Edwardian era, which was lost over the years. Currently, an individual's social position can be easily fabricated from the internet and social networks.

In Ex-libris: objects and documents, Cortes and Nunes (2020) discuss the ex-libris as an object that has the possibility of representing the social and graphic memory of an era. From this, the authors propose a methodology for the description of bibliographic property marks, taking their structure and visual language as a source. They present the ex-libris denoting its owner and the period of the work in which he was. It is noted that information about the artist responsible, the technique used and even the dating of the ex-libris are difficult to retrieve, as they have long been lost in time. Finally, the authors propose a form for the description of the ex-libris, considering aspects related to the social and graphic memory of the period and place to which they belong. As explained by Cortes and Nunes (2020), the ex-libris has great documentary potential, however it is not a document in itself, it is necessary for the researcher to extract relevant information from its composition.

Next, Ex-Libris: Cultural Forms of Memory is a study on the ex-libris as a social mediator of memory. The authors carried out a literature review on themes such as memory and traces, objects and the ex-libris, considering social and cultural aspects. From the perspective of this study, it is possible to consider the ex-libris as “a symbolic form of memory, [...] as it represents individuals and institutions and allows society, in a future time, to remember and recall memories 'stuck' to the vestiges” (CORTES; NUNES, 2020, p. 100).

Traditional ex libris, oralidad y ladrones de libros presents a different ex-libris than usual. Rather than a seal present between the first pages of a book, the ex-libris analyzed is a handwritten proprietary mark, discovered in a collection of 19th century violin scores. The writings and drawings left by the owner of this copy reveal information about the book, such as its price, and the time the owner lived, due to caricatures that allude to the reign of Amadeu I, King of Spain between 1871 and 1873 (YEREGUI, 2019). The author of this study relates the ex-libris to the rituals of written and oral culture and as a means of conserving the popular culture of an era (YEREGUI, 2019).

In Ex-libris: a patrimonial economy, Cortes et al (2019) relate the ex-libris to the memory concepts of Halbwachs and Candau, with the aim of understanding the patrimonial economy of their collecting. In this way, the authors analyze interviews available on the Cultura e Conhecimento website, carried out with three ex-libris collectors, aiming to understand the motivations that lead to their collecting and the values and exchange policies that are involved in this practice. They conclude that the ex-libris, an artifact resulting from human culture, is an object that invites collecting to act as a representation of the family's memory and the historical period of the collector (or owner of the ex-libris). In this way, these objects act as a bridge that takes the collector to another period, in a symbolic way. Thus, the ex-libris is, in addition to a work of art, an object loaded with symbols and affective bonds.

In the article Ex-Libris: the memory of a technique, the authors again relate the ex- libris to memory and visual culture. This time through the study of Brazilian ex-libris created using the woodcut technique, which are in the Digital Exlibris Museum collection at the Frederikshavn Kunstmuseum Art Museum. The authors conclude that “the presence of certain elements such as colors, themes and techniques used, show an aesthetic and artistic pattern, of a period, proper to the artist and also to the owner of the work that allow the recognition of their identity and social memory” (CORTES; NUNES, 2019, p. 12).

In Bookplate Artists & Material Culture, Kahramanoğlu (2018) analyzes the ex-libris through the lens of material culture studies. The author observes that the ex-libris, as a representation of an individual, also functions as a kind of "window" to the past. The empirical research of the article took place at the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library in Toronto, where the author had contact with Canadian ex-libris. When cataloging the collection, Kahramanoğlu (2018) observed the relationship between the material and immaterial that is present in the ex- libris, which represent artistic, social and cultural movements of a period. Through her research, the author highlights how the illustrations present in the ex-libris demonstrate the way that art mirrors society.

Towards a multimodal ethnohistorical approach: a case study of bookplates also deals with culture and memory; however, the author makes a multimodal analysis of the ex-libris through the ethno-historical method. The choice of this interdisciplinary methodology occurred due to the nature of the ex-libris as a symbol of its owner, that is, the choice of its image, colors, typography and material are relevant for historical research, as it offers information about the socio-historical context in which was raised. In this particular study, the author analyzes four ex-libris from the Edwardian era (1901-1914) in England. Based on this analysis, the author determines that the design of ex-libris is mainly influenced by the social class and financial status of the owners, as well as established norms of ex-libris of the period. She concludes that her results demonstrate the importance of grounding hypotheses about artifacts in concrete historical documents (O'HAGAN, 2019).

Analysis of the occurrence of ex-libris in the rare bibliographic collection of the Pedro Aleixo Library, of the Chamber of Deputies, makes an inventory of the ex-libris of the rare works collection of the Pedro Aleixo Library, in Brasília. After manual analysis of more than 6 thousand volumes that were present in the library, the author lists the ex-libris found and describes them according to the following descriptors: country of origin of their former owners; the artist's name when possible; the technique used to make it (SILVESTRE, 2017). 40 types of ex-libris were rescued, distributed among 22 Brazilians, 14 Portuguese and three French. An English super libris was also recovered, a proprietary mark that instead of coming inside a book is marked on its binding. The author organizes the data collected through the identification of their respective owners and a list of works in which the ex-libris can be found. The study hopes to be an incentive for more surveys of this nature in library collections, suggesting “the insertion of the name of the owner of the ex-libris in the notes field of the library management system [...], in order to achieve completeness of information, as well as a link referring to its image” (SILVESTRE, 2017, p. 76).

Ex-Libris: the unknown art, as old as the book itself, presents a historical overview of the ex-libris, highlighting in particular a German artist, Albrecht Dürer. It also explains the types of ex-libris, such as: simple, ornate or typographic; heraldic, with coats of arms or insignia of families, cities or organizations; symbolic, representing the owner's ideas and aspirations; landscape, which reproduce rural and urban scenes, among others; and mixed, when they represent more than one category (MULIN, 2017). This work also analyzes the ex-libris of the George Alexander Library, at the Universidade Presbiteriana de São Paulo. It concludes that, in this “referred bibliographic mark, the 'soul' of its owner is imprinted, translated by the art and talent of great artists or even anonymous people. Through them we can analyze their deepest desires and feelings, revealing the feeling of love for books” (MULIN, 2017, p. 78).

A belonging mark: Handwritten ex libris is a study on handwritten ex-libris. The author researches old books from three specialized libraries in Mexico. This work also alludes to the identification and realization of an inventory of the ex-libris found in libraries, suggesting that they are described during the cataloging process, so that this information is retrieved when users search the collection catalog (BARRANCO, 2017). It concludes that the identification of these property marks, in particular the names of their owners left in manuscript ex-libris, contributes to the knowledge of the social and historical context in which the book was bought, read and used as a source of information, therefore its inventory and cataloging is fundamental (BARRANCO, 2017).

It is possible to perceive the multidisciplinarity of the study on the ex-libris. The analyzed works seek foundation in the literature of fields of knowledge such as history, memory, culture, librarianship and information science, bibliography, visual arts, semiotics and sociology. The technical aspect of the ex-libris also appeared in most of the works, in which the authors describe the steps used by artists to make these small works of art.

It is also noted that Librarianship is as present as History in these researches, with two works arguing in favor of including ex-libris in library catalogs, offering the opportunity to users to also be able to search for books by their brands of property.

The results presented show a certain consistency, due to the adjacent areas of the ex- libris studies mentioned above, as well as similar methodologies: the authors analyze the characteristics of the ex-libris, mapping them and seeking to place them in a historical context, putting into evidence of the information contained therein. It is also notable that the authors reach similar conclusions regarding the role of the ex-libris as a symbol of identity - whether of an individual or even of a nation.

5 FINAL CONSIDERATIONS

Through the integrative review, it was possible to map research trends about the ex- libris, demonstrating its importance as an object of study. Despite the ex-libris representing a small part of the larger area that is the study of the book and its history, it is an object of research with multidisciplinary possibilities, relating different fields of knowledge.

The results also demonstrate the relevant presence of Brazil in current studies on this topic. Documents from international journals were sought and, in fact, of the results obtained (14), half (7) were in English. A significant portion of the results (6) were from studies carried out in the country. However, the scarce number of recovered documents represents the limitation of studies on this object. Despite a 7-year cutoff, only 14 articles matched the search criteria and, in some years, no corresponding documents were found.

It is important to highlight the different types of ex-libris researched, from stamps found in books, as is traditional, to ex-libris handwritten in music scores and super-libris engraved in relief on the binding. The analysis of these objects results in data that reveal information about the social class of their owners, the historical moment in which they lived and even their personality, highlighting the importance of studying the ex-libris by disciplines that deal with history, culture, document and information.

This research demonstrates the possibility of applying the integrative review to studies in the area of applied social sciences, such as the ex-libris, highlighting the research carried out on the subject in recent years in the country and internationally in a concise way, which may contribute to research in progress on the subject, as well as offering new avenues for future studies.

• Availability of data and material:

  Not applicable.
• Funding: This work was carried out with the support of the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel - Brazil (CAPES) - Financing Code 001.

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Data availability

Not applicable.

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  23 Jan 2023
• Date of issue
  2022

History

• Received
  06 Sept 2022
• Accepted
  10 Oct 2022
• Published
  22 Oct 2022