Units of paper quantity and US measure, in some sources, a quire was originally 24 sheets.) Quires of 15, 18 or 20 sheets have also been used, depending on the type of paper. The current word "quire" derives from OE "quair" or "guaer", from OF "quayer", "cayer", (cf. modern Fr. "cahier"), from L. "quaternum", "by fours", "fourfold". Later, when bookmaking switched to using paper and it became possible to easily stitch 5 to 7 sheets at a time, the association of "quaire" with "four" was quickly lost. In the Middle Ages, a quire (also called a "gathering") was most often formed of 4 folded
Section (bookbinding) meaning of quire, "quinterno di carta". Later, when bookmaking switched to using paper and it became possible to easily stitch 5 to 7 sheets at a time, the number of sheets and pages in a gathering became more variable. Section (bookbinding) In bookbinding, a section, gathering, or signature refers to a group of sheets, folded in the middle, and bound into the binding together. The section is the basic building block of codex bindings. In Western bookbinding, sections are sewn through their folds, with the sewing thread linking each section to its neighboring sections. The gatherings can be seen by