Genre

Religious & Spiritual

Format

Leather

Special Attributes

Illustrated

**Additional photos are available on request.** Importance: An extra-illustrated King James Bible printed in 1678 in London by John Bill, Christopher Barker, Thomas Newcomb, and Henry Hills. The Bible was printed during the Restoration period in Great Britain prior to the death of King Charles II (1630 to 1685). It was finely hand Ruled in red and it contains over 180 illustrations, two other extra works (BCP and WBP), along with numerous historiated initials. The Bible was noted to be originally from Prior Park in Bath, Somerset, England. Binding: Thick Quarto (9.75” x 8” x 4”). 6 lb 15 oz. Modern gilt tooled half fine light brown calf leather over marbled covered boards binding with uneven edges. Spine with five raised single gilt-lined bands and boards with gilt tooled fillets. Second compartment with gilt tooled red morocco leather label and title in capitals BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER & ADMINISTRATION OF THE SACRAMENTS and sixth compartment 1678. Modern marbled endpapers. Provenance: Verso of the frontispiece is signed Philip & Mary Boteler. Recto is inscribed Ph: Boteler Esq. … Bath 1878. Bought at Pickerings, originally from Prior Park. Indicating that at one point the Bible was housed inside Prior Park, which was a Neo-Palladian house designed and built on a hill overlooking Bath, Somerset, England during the 1730’s and 1740’s by English Architect John Wood the elder (1704 to 1754) for the British Entrepreneur and Philanthropist Ralph Allen (1693 to 1764). Ralph was known for his reforms to England’s postal system. The house has been designated as a Grade I listed building, which means it is a structure of particular architectural and/or historic interest that deserves special protection. Collation & Notes: BCP has [91] ff or [182] pp: π1 ([π1v] Frontispiece), A8 ([A1r] T.P.), B2, A-K8. OT has [455] ff or [910] pp: π1 ([π1r] Engraved T.P.), [A2] ([A1r] G.T.P.), B-Z8, Aa-Zz8, Aaa-Lll8, Mmm4 (ends Mmm4v). Apocrypha has [54] ff or [108] pp: A-N8, O4 (ends O4r). NT has [71] ff or [142] pp: A-R8 ([A1r] T.P.), S4, T2 (ends T2v). WBP has [52] ff or [2], 95, [7] pp: A-F8 ([A1r] T.P.), G4 (ends G4v). Total [723 ff] or (1,446 p.) Complete, with an original frontispiece of King Charles II by R. White, engraved architectural general title page by Frederick Hendrik Van Hove dated 1678, and four other title pages dated 1678. Contains 179 engraved plates on interleaved sheets by Frederick Hendrik Van Hove, and numerous historiated initials. Lacks 9 eng. (OT: 12, 17, 34, 60. NT: 1, 19, 31, 87, 95). Horizontal chain lines. Modern wove paper fly-leaves. Darlow & Moule 582. Herbert 738. Wing B2677A & B2304. USTC (contact info removed), records 19 copies worldwide (U.K. 12 & U.S. 7). ESTC R35702. WorldCat & OCLC records no copies. Condition: Leaves (9.75” x 7”). Finely hand Ruled in red. General toning. Light staining & marks in places. Headlines slightly cut in places, else generally good. BCP: first 10 ff with some chips, tears, & old repairs; some old repairs to engravings; eng. 110 backed with later paper; eng. 100 outer & tail margins cut shorter. OT: F7 outer margin old repair; Ee7 small hole in text with some loss, as well as a large stain that progressively diminishes in size; eng. 63 relaid on later paper. NT: eng. 49 large tear at tail; eng. 91 slightly cut short at tail. WBP: final leaf with slight tear & tiny chips.