One thing I noticed when studying this edition of The Idiot was that the illustrations were almost always printed on the recto side of the page. The only exception of an image printed on the verso is the title page illustration. I also noticed that the verso of the illustrations’ pages were blank.

Some questions arise:

• Is there a reason why the image is mostly printed on the recto side of pages? Is it for economical or aesthetic reasons?
  • That is, would it be more aesthetically pleasing and easier for the reader to view an illustration, while having the text available to them on the image’s left?
• Why are the verso pages blank?
  • Is it to prevent ink from bleeding through the page onto the text page behind it?