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Bookmark Pointers
by
Laine Farley
A San Francisco Chronicle article titled “Around the House: A Show of Hands” caught my eye with its photograph of Dennis Spivak’s Hall of Hands, part of his collection of hand-shaped objects. I’ve always had a strange fascination for the pointing hand symbol that often appears in graphics. It seems to be a perfect symbol for a bookmark, a pointer to page and place. Mr. Spivak observed about the hand: “Apparently, every culture has the hand as a symbol, and they all mean great things like creative spirit, keeping out evil, welcoming love, new beginnings, family unity.” I wondered what the pointing finger symbolizes and whether it has a name.
I discovered an erudite discussion from June 1993 on the Rare Books and Special Collections Forum hosted by Stanford that begins with just that question. Respondents suggested the terms “fist,” “hand,” “digit,” “index,” “indicator” and “pilcrow” with varying levels of proof or documentation. A debate ensued over whether “pilcrow” is the name for the paragraph sign or the pointing finger. The source that best conveys the various theories is Glaister's Glossary of the Book:
Digit: . . . the printer's symbol [pointing hand]. This type ornament has a long history, the printed outline of a hand being used as a paragraph mark by, . . . early printers . . . As with other typographic conventions this was taken from scribal practice, carefully drawn hands pointing to a new paragraph being found in early 12th century (Spanish) manuscripts. It is also known as a fist, hand, or index.
The venerable Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable adds to the confusion, noting that pilcrow is “a mark in printing, to attract attention, made thus [paragraph symbol] or [right fist].
Other respondents pointed out (pardon the pun) other examples of this image such as the “purple rubber stamped image usually pointing to the return address and noting “Return to Sender . . .” used by the post office, and the most intriguing reference to the yad, the Hebrew word for “hand.” A yad is “a silver rod tapering to a little hand with an extended forefinger” that “allow[s] the reader to keep his (and, recently, her) place during the reading without actually touching the scroll and possibly damaging the ink.”
Regardless of its name or origin, this symbol frequently makes an appearance throughout the history of bookmarks. The Victorians seemed especially enamored of pointing fingers and disembodied hands in general. The set of four Pears Soap bookmarks use the pointing finger to draw attention to the virtues of the soap. Two ringed ladies’ hands poke through illustrations of satin fabric hung with decorative medals. A third lady’s hand is gloved, holding a fan and dance card, while the fourth is a man’s hand holding a pen that still provides the pointing effect. This set of bookmarks is frequently illustrated and documented, and individual examples appear for sale fairly often, but rarely the entire set.
A tiny but wonderful Whitehead and Hoag bookmark that is especially “on point” (sorry again) is in the shape of the pointing finger and offers “A pointer! Always use Gramophone Needles.”
 
Three other Victorians in my collection don’t point but use the disembodied hand to interesting effect. A delicate lady’s hand with a crisp white cuff holds aloft a beautiful bouquet of violets on the card with the verse “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” My favorite is one in the shape of a hand holding a brown sparrow with the title “A Bird in the Hand is worth two in the Bush. Eat Sparrow’s Chocolates.” On the reverse it declares: “This little cut-out will make a charming book-mark, and by so using it you will have Sparrow’s Empress Chocolates always in mind.” Indeed, it appeals in every way.
Bookmarks in the shape of a gloved hand are another common variation on this theme and time period, often used by department stores, clothiers, or glove makers. My example is from J. C. and J. F. Field, glove makers in Philadelphia, and evokes the elegance and formality of the age.
Libraries frequently make use of the symbol in some creative ways. A classic use is evident on a bookmark from the Contra Costa County, CA Library that provides “Where to Find It: A Quick Dewey Reference Guide.” Simple and direct. The UC San Diego Libraries turn the pointing finger directly at the reader in a more aggressive message saying that “You need to know about . . . the effects of Post-Its” because they damage books. The San Francisco Public Library uses the hand to menacing effect as it emerges from the grave to “Reach for a horror book,” many of which are listed on this bookmark for teenagers.
Coming full circle, two artists who participated in the Bookmarks Exhibits sponsored by the Centre for Fine Print Research at the University of the West of England printed their bookmarks on hand presses and used the pointing hand to reference typographical conventions in their designs. Imi Maufe’s “You Are Here” bookmark was printed on an “Adana press at the Industrial Museum in Bristol, the type design and pointing hand linking both her artist’s book practice and her interest in cycling, travels and signs.” John Evans’ bookmark titled “Nightwood” from the novel by Djuna Barnes uses a slightly modified quote from the book that mentions a bookmark. The pointing hand symbol suggests the accusatory tap of the executioner’s hand referenced in the quote, and is balanced by the mark of his Lyme Grove Press.
Finally, a bookmark with the basic message to “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you” raises the bar with its illustration of a hand reaching down to touch the fingers of another hand, an image with powerful associations. By chance, I came across a passage in Neil Ten Kortenaar’s Self, Nation, Text in Salman Rushdie’s Midnight Children (p. 184) that sums up the mysterious allure of the pointing finger:
The painted pointer is not just of iconic significance but also serves as a literal index, directing the eye to something beyond itself . . . The finger may be pointing, like the figure of the Buddha in the Sundarbans, “’That way’ and then ‘Down there’,” while leading the viewer on a wild goose chase. We may legitimately conclude that the finger can point wherever the viewer wants it to point. Not only can the finger point to anything, but anything may have a finger pointing to it.
Including a bookmark.
Bookmark specifications: Purity itself
Dimensions: 1 1/4” x 7 1/4”
Material: Paper
Manufacturer: Pears Soap
Date: 1890s?
Acquired: eBay
Bookmark specifications: A pointer!
Dimensions: 1 1/8” x 2 1/2”
Material: paper
Manufacturer: Whitehead and Hoag for Gramophone
Date: 190?
Acquired: Gift from Lauren Roberts
Bookmark specifications: Set your affection . . .
Dimensions: 2 1/8” x 4 7/8”
Material: Paper
Manufacturer: Unknown
Date: 191?
Acquired: eBay
Bookmark specifications: A Bird in the Hand . . .
Dimensions: 2 1/2” x 5 3/8”
Material: Paper
Manufacturer: Sparrow Chocolates
Date: 192?
Acquired: eBay
Bookmark specifications: J. C. & J. F. Field, Glovers
Dimensions: 1 1/4” x 5”
Material: Paper
Manufacturer: Wm. F. Fell & Co., Printers, Philadelphia, PA
Date: 189?
Acquired: eBay
Bookmark specifications: Where to Find It: A Quick Dewey Reference Guide Dimensions: 2 3/4” x 11”
Material: Paper
Manufacturer: Contra Costa County Library, Pleasant Hill, CA
Date: 1994
Acquired: Contra Costa County Library
Bookmark specifications: You need to know about...The Effects of POST-ITS™
Dimensions: 2 3/4” x 8 1/2”
Material: Paper
Manufacturer: University of California, San Diego Libraries
Date: 1994
Acquired: UCSD Libraries
Bookmark specifications: Reach for a Horror Book
Dimensions: 2 3/4” x 8 1/2”
Material: Paper
Manufacturer: San Francisco Public Library
Date: 1996
Acquired: San Francisco Public Library
Bookmark specifications: The Golden Rule
Dimensions: 1 5/8” x 6”
Material: Satin ribbon
Manufacturer: Baskwill Funeral Home, Hatboro, PA
Date: 200?
Acquired: eBay
Laine Farley is a digital librarian who misses being around the look, feel and smell of real books. Her collection of over 3,000 bookmarks began with a serendipitous find while reviewing books donated to the library. Fortunately, her complementary collection of articles and books about bookmarks provides an excuse for her to get back to libraries and try her hand at writing about bookmarks. Laine's web site is Collecting Bookmarks (Physical, not Virtual), and she can be reached at
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