Bookplate of Alden McLellan III, circa 1917

Bookplates show ownership, but they can also tell us more. Often pasted on the inside of a book's front cover or endpaper, these printed labels contain the owner's name and sometimes the words "ex-libris" (Latin for "from the library of"). Coats of arms, crests, other decorative images, poems, mottoes, and even font type provide insight into the beliefs, passions, and interests of the book's owner.