Some book collectors and libraries mark their ownership of books with a bookplate, a small piece of paper, typically rectangular in shape, printed or engraved with the name of the library or collector. If a suelta or other book has a bookplate, it is generally pasted on the inside front cover (provided that the single suelta has a covering).

Many bookplates include the Latin phrase “ex libris” before the owner’s name, meaning ‘from the library of'. The design of an ex-libris can be the simple initials of the owner (person or library), sport a motto, or have an elaborate design that communicates the hobbies or the profession of the collector. Archer Huntington’s personal bookplate was a small, pared, gold-printed piece of parchment, on many, but not all of his donations to the Hispanic Society.

The value (either scholarly or financial—or both) of a suelta can be enhanced when it contains the bookplate of a known collector or scholar.

see also: provenance
consult also: armorial design in Miscellanies