Snip!t from collection of Alan Dix

<p class="entry-caption"><img style="display: inline;" src="http://www.thisiscolossal.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Summer.gif" data-lazy-type="image" data-lazy-src="http://www.thisiscolossal.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Summer.gif" alt="Secret Fore Edge Paintings Revealed in Early 19th Century Books at the University of Iowa seasons painting illustration fore edge painting books " class="lazy alignnone size-full wp-image-36230 data-lazy-ready" title="Secret Fore Edge Paintings Revealed in Early 19th Century Books at the University of Iowa" height="338" width="600"><noscript><img src="http://www.thisiscolossal.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Summer.gif" alt="Secret Fore Edge Paintings Revealed in Early 19th Century Books at the University of Iowa seasons painting illustration fore edge painting books " width="600" height="338" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-36230" title="Secret Fore Edge Paintings Revealed in Early 19th Century Books at the University of Iowa"/></noscript><br>Summer by Robert Mudie / Special Collections &amp; University Archives at the University of Iowa</p> <p>A few days ago <a href="https://twitter.com/libralthinking" target="_blank">Colleen Theisen</a> who helps with outreach and instruction at the <a href="https://www.lib.uiowa.edu/spec-coll/" target="_blank">Special Collections &amp; University Archives</a> at the University of Iowa shared an amazing <a href="http://uispeccoll.tumblr.com/post/59499211752/its-a-secret-to-everybody-this-is-one-example" target="_blank">gif she made</a> that demonstrates something called <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fore-edge_painting" target="_blank">fore-edge painting</a> on the edge of a 1837 book called <em>Autumn</em> by Robert Mudie. Fore-edge painting, which is believed to date back as early as the 1650s, is a way of hiding a painting on the edge of a book so that it can only be seen when the pages are fanned out. There are even books that have double fore-edge paintings, where a different image can be seen by flipping the book over and fanning the pages in the opposite direction.</p> <p>When I realized the book Theisen shared was only one of a series about the seasons, I got in touch and she agreed to photograph the other three so we could share them with you here. Above are photos of <a href="http://infohawk.uiowa.edu/F/?func=find-b&amp;find_code=SYS&amp;local_base=UIOWA&amp;request=002786461" target="_blank">Spring</a>, <a href="http://infohawk.uiowa.edu/F/?func=find-b&amp;find_code=SYS&amp;local_base=UIOWA&amp;request=002786457" target="_blank">Summer</a>, <a href="http://infohawk.uiowa.edu/F/?func=find-b&amp;find_code=SYS&amp;local_base=UIOWA&amp;request=002786457" target="_blank">Autumn</a> and <a href="http://infohawk.uiowa.edu/F/?func=find-b&amp;find_code=SYS&amp;local_base=UIOWA&amp;request=002786459" target="_blank">Winter</a> which were donated to the University of Iowa by Charlotte Smith. How much fun are these? Keep an eye on the University of Iowa&#x2019;s special collections <a href="http://uispeccoll.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">Tumblr</a> as they unearth more artificats from the archives.</p>