Burmese Fortune Teller's Book

Black lacquer boards, worn red at the rim, and a thin dark spine.

This fortune teller’s book comes from Burma, made of paper and pigment in the 19th century. Burmese folding books were commonly protected with lacquered boards and used for religious texts and astrology. The cover is black with a red border, rubbed and scuffed over many years, and faint traces of a painted pattern sit in the middle. The text block inside is folded in accordion style. It is the kind of cover that rewards a slow look, with its crackled lacquer and the deep red catching the light.

Heavy on atmosphere, light on explanations.