The National Library of Scotland initiated the Elizabeth Soutar Bookbinding Competition in 1993, to recognise excellence in the field of craft bookbinding, and to encourage the practice and development of skills which display individual expression and originality. Open to residents of any EU member state, the competition offers two prizes, for Best Competition Entrant and Best Student Entrant. Submissions comprise a single example of a craft binding, with materials, publication, language and subject all of the competitors' own choice. In addition to assessing the skills applied, judges look, in particular, for originality and expression in the design. The competition now atracts entries from binders all over Europe, with recent winners having come from Belgium, Sweden, the Netherlands and Italy, as well as Scotland and England.

It is a condition of entry that, in the event of being awarded a prize, the winner will donate the bound volume to the National Library of Scotland, where it will be placed in the Library’s collection of fine bindings. Participants must also be willing to lend their entries to the National Library of Scotland for a period of six months after the competition ends in order to allow an exhibition of entries to be held.

Closing date for receipt of competition entries is 1 October 2004 and the result will be announced in early 2005.