Catalogue 4
W
e are releasing our fourth catalogue in preparation for the upcoming New York International Antiquarian Book Fair. Some of the highlights include:
A 1541 Great Bible with All Title Pages
Francis Fry’s Personal Copy of his 1526 Tyndale New Testament
A Book of Hours from the Masters of the Beady Eyes
A Rare Copy of Tyndale’s Pentateuch
Cartwright’s Confutation - An American Incunable
The Great He Bible
1541 Great Bible
A landmark in the history of England and the English Bible, best understood through its striking title page. At the top, Henry VIII dominates the scene, symbolizing the replacement of papal authority with royal authority through the Act of Supremacy. Above him, God is barely visible among the clouds. To Henry’s left and right stand Archbishop Cranmer and Thomas Cromwell, who pass the Verbum Dei to the clergy and nobility. Yet, the common people do not receive the Bible directly as it is chained to pulpits. Nevertheless, the crowd below proclaims "Long Live the King" in Latin, while those who remain silent appear imprisoned in the lower right corner.
Just two years after William Tyndale’s death, his prayer was answered in the publication of this monumental book. An impressive copy of the scarce Great Bible so called due to its imposing size. The tallest of the early folio editions adorned with over 130 woodcuts.
Calendar printed in red and black. General title page (1541) also printed in red and black. Text in two column black letter with 65 lines to the full column. The beginning of each chapter features a floriated or historiated woodcut initial, with occasional metal cast capitals. Title pages to the second, third, and fourth parts also printed in red and black, bordered by the relevant woodcuts to that section. The New Testament title page (n.d.) in red and black like the general title. Concludes with The Table and colophon (November 1540). Lacks two preliminary leaves, provided in very good facsimile.
Francis Fry Tyndale New Testament
A
leading expert on the bibliography of early English Bibles, Francis Fry (1803–1886) devoted years to studying their printings and variations. As a committed Quaker, Fry was deeply involved in the anti-slavery cause. In 1850, he traveled to northern Italy as part of a deputation from the Society of Friends to meet various sovereigns. He took advantage of the opportunity to visit galleries and museums along the way.
In 1860, Fry visited Germany to conduct research focused on the history of printing. His research pointed to Peter Schoeffer, a renowned printer in Strasbourg, as likely involved in printing Tyndale’s 1526 New Testament. Fry’s analysis of the typefaces and other evidence suggested that Schoeffer’s press may have been responsible for its production.
In response, Bishop Cuthbert Tunstall, who had denied Tyndale’s request to translate the Bible, banned the book in October 1526. On October 27, he held a public book burning and claimed to have found two thousand errors in Tyndale’s text. The archbishop of Canterbury, William Warham, even requested financial contributions from his bishops to fund the destruction of copies, with the bishop of Norwich sending money and praising Warham’s act as a "gracious and blessed deed" for which “God would reward him.”
Two years after his discovery, Francis Fry produced a facsimile reprint of Tyndale’s 1526 New Testament to preserve and share this critical text with a broader audience. The facsimile was lithographed from the copy once held at Bristol Bible College, now housed at the British Library. The original 1526 edition of Tyndale’s New Testament is very rare, as many copies were destroyed due Tunstall’s efforts.
Fry worked carefully to reproduce the text, preserving the typography, layout, and original appearance of the 1526 edition. This limited edition was produced in 177 copies, most in a small octavo format, with 26 copies in a larger quarto. A note written inside a copy at a Christie’s auction mentions that only seven copies were printed on vellum, with a few copies in each format. Some copies are also signed by Fry at the end of the introduction.
Our copy is printed on vellum, issued in the large quarto format, and signed by Fry. It is bound in an attractive Zaehnsdorf binding, with Fry’s name lettered in gilt - this is Francis Fry’s personal copy.
The book was handed down in the Fry family until 1997, when it was purchased by a reputable Bible dealer, sold to a private collection, and then acquired by us.
Woodcut title ornament, illustration, headpieces and initials, and lithographic facsimile illustrations. Illuminated with 13 miniatures in gold and colors, and initials and chapter and verse markings in gold, blue, and red. Printed on fine white vellum throughout. Signed by Francis Fry at the end of the introduction as “Francis Fry, Cotham, Bristol, 3 Mo. 1862.”
Book of Hours
A 15th century illuminated Book of Hours inscribed in a flowing Gothic script. Produced in Belgium from the workshop of the Masters of the Beady Eyes with a suite of 22 miniatures consisting of 10 full-page and 12 smaller square examples. Brought to market since its last 1860 public sale and recently acquired at auction.
The Masters of the Beady Eyes are a continuation of the artists from the group of the Masters of the Gold Scrolls, originally active in Bruges, and emulating much of that style of modeling. Active in Ghent and Bruges they are recognized by the characteristic way of drawing the eyes using a sustained line and a small disk for the pupil – a small beady dot to represent the eyes of figures. Additionally, there is a color palate of pastel tones, including an almond green and flat tints of bright colors (dark red, blue, and orange) that the artist of this manuscript favors. The hanging and backgrounds present decorations with “golden scrolls” with colored paving, most certainly derived from the Masters of the Gold Scrolls.
Illuminated throughout with leaves ruled in purple ink and capitals highlighted in both red and blue. Ten brightly illuminated full-page miniatures, each inscribed with three-sided borders featuring illuminated scrollwork and enhanced with white dots, fruits, flowers, foliage, and gold vine leaves. Twelve smaller miniatures accompanied by a similar three-sided border. Each major text section is introduced by four-line initials and large miniatures. Hundreds of single to double line illuminated initials on alternating red and blue backgrounds in addition to numerous red and blue line fillers, all enhanced with illumination. Bound in brown triple gilt-paneled calf, spine with six compartments richly decorated with gilt flowers.
Tyndale’s Pentateuch
T
yndale’s Pentateuch is one of the great rarities of the English Bible. When reflecting on the triumphs of the Tudor age, we celebrate the reigns of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, the brilliance of playwrights and poets, and the achievements of painters, musicians, and architects. Yet, as Dr. Daniell observed, we have long overlooked a great literary achievement—Tyndale’s translation of the Pentateuch.
Tyndale’s work laid the foundation for all subsequent English Bible translations. His influence on the Old Testament is profound. Even in books Tyndale did not personally translate, his phrasing, structure, and stylistic choices shaped the future of English Bible translation. Between 1526 and 1534, Tyndale shifted from his New Testament translation to Hebrew scholarship. The first result of this effort was his 1530 Pentateuch—a groundbreaking moment in the history of the English Bible.
This 1551 printing of the Pentateuch, revised by Richard Taverner, contains an unrecorded misprint in the Ten Commandments. You may have heard of the infamous "Wicked Bible," but today, we introduce you to the "Covet Bible."
In a startling misprint, the Tenth Commandment in our copy reads: “Thou shalt covet thy neighbor’s house, field, servant, maid …” Given the extreme rarity of this edition, we reached out to the two known institutions holding copies to confirm both the misprint and the edition. Perhaps you’re searching for a Tyndale Pentateuch, a Bible with a legendary misprint, or a book that no other private collector owns. Here you can have all three in one book!
The five books of Moses, translated by William Tyndale, were not only the first printed editions in English—they were the first translations directly from Hebrew into English. Before this, English translations of the Old Testament relied on Latin versions rather than the original Hebrew. In 1530, knowledge of Hebrew in England was limited to a small circle of scholars at Cambridge and Oxford. Most of the population did not know that there was a Hebrew language at all, much less that it was the language of the Old Testament.
Tyndale’s translation choices show an understanding of Hebrew idioms and structure that was groundbreaking for his time. He did not merely translate word for word but sought to capture the meaning and flow of the original Hebrew in natural, readable English.
Cartwright’s Confutation
T
he author and printer of this work shared a steadfast commitment to church reform. Cartwright, a gifted preacher and staunch advocate of Presbyterianism, spent a third of his life in prison or exile. He was described by John Strype as “the head and most learned of that sect of dissenters then called Puritans.” Brewster, a Cambridge-educated separatist, later followed a group of like-minded reformers to Holland. With the support of Thomas Brewer, he established a clandestine press, publishing twenty Separatist books between 1617 and 1619. This title came to the attention of Sir Dudley Carleton, the English ambassador, who had been tasked by James I with suppressing literature deemed subversive to English political ideology.
Brewster, however, had even greater ambitions. In 1620, he joined the Pilgrims on their journey to America in pursuit of religious freedom. His works are considered true American incunabula, and legend holds that “the great iron screw” used to reinforce the Mayflower’s main beam during a violent storm was originally from Brewster’s press.
The Great He Bible
T
he editio princeps of the King James Bible – the crowning jewel of English Bible versions and one of the most important books in all literature. Its influence can best be summed up by G.M. Trevelyan who stated that “for every Englishman who had read Sidney or Spenser, or had seen Shakespeare acted at the Globe, there were hundreds who had read or heard the Bible with close attention as the words of God. The effect of the continual domestic study of the book upon the national character, imagination and intelligence for nearly three centuries to come, was greater than that of any literary movement in our annals, or any religious movement since the coming of St. Augustine.”
