What Is a Colophon? — The Printer's Closing Statement

A colophon (from the Greek kolophōn, meaning “summit” or “finishing touch”) is an inscription at the end of a book or manuscript containing information about its production. In its earliest form, the colophon served the function that title pages serve today — identifying the printer, place of production, and date. In modern fine press and limited edition publishing, the colophon has evolved into a detailed production statement that bibliophiles and collectors prize as a record of the bookmaking craft.

The Historical Colophon

Manuscripts

Manuscript colophons predate printing by centuries. Medieval scribes often added notes at the end of their work identifying themselves, the date of completion, the patron who commissioned the manuscript, and sometimes personal remarks — prayers of thanks, complaints about the difficulty of the work, or curses upon anyone who might steal or damage the book. These manuscript colophons are among the most charming and human elements of medieval books.

Incunabula (Pre-1501 Printing)

In the earliest printed books, there were no title pages. The text began on the first leaf (often with an incipit: “Here begins…”) and ended with a colophon. The colophon was the primary means of identifying who printed the book, where, and when.

A famous early colophon is that of the Mainz Psalter (1457), printed by Johann Fust and Peter Schöffer:

“The present copy of the Psalms, adorned with beauty of capital letters, and sufficiently rubricized, has been thus fashioned by an ingenious invention of printing and stamping without any driving of a pen, and to the worship of God has been diligently brought to completion by Johann Fust, a citizen of Mainz, and Peter Schöffer of Gernsheim, in the year of the Lord 1457, on the vigil of the Feast of the Assumption.”

This colophon is remarkable for its explicit pride in the new technology of printing — “without any driving of a pen” — and for its precise identification of the printers and date.

The Rise of the Title Page

As printing matured through the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, the title page gradually assumed the identifying function that the colophon had served. By the mid-sixteenth century, most books carried title pages with the publisher’s name, place, and date, and the colophon became less common in standard commercial publishing.

The Modern Colophon

Fine Press and Limited Editions

The colophon experienced a revival in the private press movement of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Fine press publishers — from William Morris’s Kelmscott Press to today’s Arion Press, Barbarian Press, and Steidl — use the colophon as a detailed production statement, recording:

Typeface — the name and size of the type used, and often its provenance (who designed it, when, and whether it was set by hand or machine).

Paper — the type, maker, and weight of the paper. Handmade papers are identified by the mill (Magnani, Rives, Zerkall, Twinrocker); the material may also be noted (cotton rag, kozo, etc.).

Printing — the method of printing (letterpress, offset, lithography), the press used (its make and sometimes its name), and the number of colors or impressions.

Illustrations — the artist, medium (wood engraving, etching, lithograph, pochoir), and method of printing.

Binding — the binder, materials (cloth, leather, paper), and binding method.

Edition size — the total number of copies printed, including any variant issues (deluxe copies, lettered copies, out-of-series copies).

Date and place — when and where the book was produced.

A well-crafted colophon from a modern fine press might read:

“This edition of The Old Man and the Sea was designed and printed at the Arion Press, San Francisco, in an edition of 300 copies. The text was set in 14-point Monotype Bembo and printed letterpress on Rives BFK paper from the Arjomari mill in France. The wood engravings were printed from the original blocks by the artist. The binding is quarter leather with Japanese cloth sides. Completed in May 2024.”

The Colophon as Collector Information

For collectors, the colophon provides essential information:

Edition identification — the colophon confirms the edition size, copy number, and production details that define a limited edition.

Material record — knowing the exact paper, type, and binding materials helps with authentication and conservation. If a book’s paper is identified as “Magnani handmade” in the colophon, a conservator knows what they are working with.

Craft documentation — the colophon records the human labor and artistic decisions behind the book. In an age of industrial production, this documentation of craft is itself valued.

Colophon vs. Limitation Statement

The terms colophon and limitation statement are sometimes used interchangeably, but they are technically distinct:

• A limitation statement records the edition size and copy number; it may include the author’s or artist’s signature
• A colophon records the production details — materials, methods, and personnel
• In practice, many fine press books combine both into a single statement at the back of the book

Publisher’s Colophons and Logos

A separate use of the word “colophon” refers to a publisher’s logo or device — the distinctive graphic mark that identifies the publisher. Examples include:

• The Penguin penguin
• The Random House house
• The Knopf borzoi (Russian wolfhound)
• The Scribner’s torch
• The Anchor Books anchor

This usage of “colophon” to mean “publisher’s device” is technically a misnomer (the device is more properly called a printer’s mark or publisher’s device), but it has become standard in the trade.

Colophons in Catalog Descriptions

When describing books for sale, dealers note the colophon when it provides significant information:

• “Colophon states this is number 47 of 250 copies”
• “With colophon identifying the paper as Arches and the type as Centaur”
• “Printed colophon signed by the author and illustrator”

The colophon is a small but significant feature of the physical book — a record of its making that connects the finished object to the hands, materials, and intentions that created it. For collectors of fine press books and limited editions, the colophon is not merely informational; it is an essential part of the book’s identity and appeal.