Preserving rare books from all over the world
Milton Watkins is restoring some of the most precious books in the world from a humble shopfront next to his Ballarat home.
The professional bookbinder and restorer receives rare books from all over the world, which he painstakingly restores for their owners.
Milton recalls one rather chilling job
“The oldest book I’ve come across was on witchcraft from the 13th century. It was sent to me from a Melbourne collector and was covered in leather that I’m pretty sure was human skin. I’d certainly never come across a leather like that before,” Milton says.
He was once asked to repair a beautiful old bible that had seen better days. When he opened the cover Milton discovered the pages had been carefully cut out to conceal a pistol.
Milton has also created props for Movie World, and university students from all over Victoria ask him to bind their thesis. He’s currently creating an ornate cover for The Never Ending Story that replicates the book in the movie, for a man as a unique gift for his wife.
“Restoration work is a dying art. I love difficult restorations that give me a chance to make up special plates and fonts for the client. It can be really challenging and I love handing over the finished product.”
Milton says a man from Hong Kong recently contacted him in the hope he could restore a precious piece of history.
“He sent me a photo album of Japanese soldiers who were about to be deployed to serve in World War Two. Apparently the gentleman had posted the album to a restorer in Paris but they didn’t feel they could restore it adequately, so they recommended me.”
Combining Old With New
Milton combines old fashioned techniques with new technologies for restoration work.
He has sourced a variety of printing presses that date back to the early 1800s to create new covers for decrepit books, and he can also renew gold embossing.
As a youngster Milton had a keen interest in the book-making process. He completed a bookbinding apprenticeship after school and worked with specialists in Melbourne before branching out on his own. These days he’s one of a handful of professional hand-binding bookbinders and restorers in the country.
“There aren’t many bookbinders who offer restorations. Most people have a bible under their bed that was their grandmothers, that they’d like to have restored.” These days, people from all over the globe in need of a restorer track him down.
"I thought the business would work well in Ballarat given it's such a historic city"
Milton says large books take up to 20 hours to restore but can require weeks to dry. Most of the leathers he uses are imported from a specialist supplier in the UK. The cost for his service can vary from just a few dollars to hundreds, depending on the hours involved.
“I use the traditional method of using acid-free products so the bindings last a life time or more. I feel very honoured that I’m trusted with someone else’s history.”
So bring your old books to Milton Watkins during the Ballarat Heritage Weekend. He will be demonstrating the techniques of traditional book binding on Sunday 11 May and is happy to answers questions or quote to restore old books during the day.
