Books, while containing vast stores of knowledge, have had an interesting history when it comes to their construction. The binding methods would become extremely creepy in the 19th century, when some books were bound in human skin. We’ve seen the “Evil Dead” franchise, and we KNOW not to mess with books bound in human skin.
The fine folks at the Harvard Library however, chose to go against that notion.
On March 27th, the Harvard Library chose to remove the human skin binding from a 19th century book. The book, “Des Destinées de l’Ame” by Arsène Houssaye,” has been in the library for decades. Around 10 years ago, they became aware that the binding was indeed human skin. It was a discovery found on two other books in the library’s possession. The staff chose to announce the news via two “sensationalistic blog posts,” written in a tone the institution now regrets.
“Harvard Library acknowledges past failures in its stewardship of the book that further objectified and compromised the dignity of the human being whose remains were used for its binding. We apologize to those adversely affected by these actions,” the library said.
The library chose to remove and place the remains to rest after heavy consideration from experts and stakeholders. It is believed the human skin binding was placed on the book by the first owner, French physician Ludovic Bouland. Bouland left a note inside the book claiming, “a book about the human soul deserved to have a human covering.” The running theory is that Bouland obtained the remains from the hospital he attended as a medical student; taking them from a deceased woman without consent.
Since the discovery of the human skin binding, the Harvard Library found itself as part of student hazing. Students would be told to get the book, without being told about what the binding was made of. We can’t imagine the pure look of horror when the students were told about the binding after retrieving it.
