An
important single-owner collection of rare and early Bibles is
to go under the hammer next week. Comprising some 83 lots are
Bibles in Latin, Greek, English and French, together with some
fine copies of The Book of Common Prayer and other significant
liturgical texts. Ranging in estimated price from £100
to 6,000, these worthy books have come from the estate of a
deceased collector from the Welsh Borders, and will be auctioned
at Bonhams’ Sale of Photography, Printed Books and Manuscripts
at 101 New Bond Street on 17 May.

The Bible continues to be one of the book trade’s biggest
sellers, and the market for old and scarce copies has grown
steadily over recent years, with certain editions – such
as the 1611 Bible – bought for a few pounds 30 or 40 years
ago now fetching four figures. “Some of the Bibles we are
selling are extremely rare and sought-after by collectors in
the UK and North America,” explained Simon Roberts of Bonhams’
book department. “It is unusual to come across such a comprehensive
collection of fine and important examples, many of which are
in beautiful leather bindings. We have here an excellent cross
section of both Catholic and Protestant editions, the earliest
being a Nuremberg version dating from 1482 estimated at £2,000
– 3,000.”

Of
greatest value is a first edition of the ‘Bishop’s
Version’ of the Bible in English, dating from 1568 and
estimated to fetch between £4,000 – 6,000. This text
was revised from Matthew Parker’s ‘Great Bible’
version and is sometimes known as the ‘Treacle Bible.’
The Bishop’s Version is prized especially for its sumptuous
typography and illustration, and this edition is no exception.
A copy of the ‘Great Bible’ Bible, also ‘in Englyshe’
and dating from 1540, is expected to fetch up to £4,000.
An illustration of King Henry, Cranmer and Cromwell distributing
Bibles offers a timely reminder of the religious turmoil England
suffered at the time of its printing. The Church’s continental
conflict is also reflected in the sale, with a fifth edition
of humanist scholar Desiderious Erasmus’s (1466 –
1536) Bible in Greek and Latin estimated at £300 –
500. Erasmus made it his life’s work to introduce a more
rational conception of Christian doctrine amidst the church’s
conflict on the continent following the publication of Martin
Luther’s ‘Ninety-Five Theses.’ This edition was
the last published during Erasmus’s lifetime and has been
hailed as “his life’s crowning glory.” (A.L.
Rowse, The English Spirit, 1944).

A first edition of the significant ‘Geneva’ Bible
is expected to fetch £2,500 – 3,500. This was the
earlist English Bible printed in Roman type and with verse division,
and its distinctly ‘Calvanistic’ tone endeared it
especially to the puritans, and for three generations it was
hailed as the ‘Bible of the people.’ It also significantly
influenced the later translation in the King James’ Bible
of 1611. Also within the collection is a first edition of the
King James’ Bible to be printed in Scotland, probably published
to coincide with the coronation of Charles I in 1633. This copy,
estimate £800 – 1,200, is inscribed by Robert Everard,
a writer who had been engaged as a Royalist during the civil
war, but who later converted to Catholicism. A rare first edition
of the ‘Douai’ version of the Bible offered Roman
Catholics the first English translation of their New Testament.
Published in 1582 – a time when Elizabeth I was struggling
to maintain a policy of religious tolerance – this copy
is expected to fetch up to £1,500.

For more details visit the Bonhams
web site.