The Holy Bible, Containing The Old Testament And The New; With The Apocrypha: Translated out of the Original Tongues, With Annotations.

RA Collection: Book

Record number

03/2900

Variant Title

New Testament Of Our Lord And Saviour Jesus Christ

Imprint

Birmingham;: Printed by John Baskerville., MDCCLXXII.

Physical Description

[1224] p., frontis., [9] pl.; 419 mm. (Folio).

Contents

[Frontis., t.p.] - The Names and Orders of all the Books of the Old and New Testament - [Text of Old Testament, with pl.] - [Text of Apocrypha] - [T.p. of New Testament] - [Text of New Testament, with pl.] - Tables Of Scripture Measures, Weights, Coins, and Time. By the Right Reverend Richard, Lord Bishop of Peterborough.

Responsibility Note

The tables by Richard, bishop of Peterborough, may be by Richard Terrick (bishop 1757-1764), Richard Cumberland (1691-1718) or Richard Howland (1585-1600). (The bishop of Peterborough at the time of publication of this book (1771-1772) was John Hinchcliffe.)

The frontispiece is signed as drawn by J.M. Moreau le jeune; the first plate, as drawn by F. Hayman; the fourth, as painted by C. Vanloo; the seventh and eighth, as painted by J. Jouvenet. All but two are signed by their engravers - Louis Le Grand, Westwood, Isaac Taylor, J. Caldwall.

References

P. Gaskell, A bibliography of John Baskerville (2nd. ed. 1973), no.35.

F. Pardoe, John Baskerville of Birmingham: letter-founder and printer (1975).
ESTC, T91154 [describing an issue without plates].

Summary Note

The New Testament has its own title-page, dated 1771 and reading, 'The New Testament Of Our Lord And Saviour Jesus Christ, Translated out of the Original Tongues, With Annotations. Birmingham; Printed by John Baskerville. MDCCLXXI'. The book was issued in parts, starting in January 1769, and with a title-page carrying the date 1769; the title-page with date amended to 1772 will have been made when the work was issued complete.

The text is printed in double columns. The translation is accompanied by chapter-summaries and foot-notes. The translation of the Apocrypha is printed separately from the rest of the Old Testament.

The plates show: (frontis.) Adam and Eve in Paradise (Genesis II); Adam and Eve driven out of Paradise (Gen. 3:23); Jacob meets Rachel (Gen. 29:10); And when the ass saw the angel of the Lord (Num. 22:28); When the evil spirit from God was upon Saul (I Sam. 16:23); David danced before the Lord (II Sam. 6:14); He took the young child and his mother (Matt. 2:14); They set up over his head his accusation (Matt. 27:34); When Joseph had taken the body (Matt. 27: 59); The angel said unto her, Fear not (Lk. 1:30).

The Academicians do not appear to have collected systematically examples of the typographer's art; but for their Bible they chose the work of one of the eighteenth century's finest printers. Baskerville's Virgil had been issued in 1757, and already exemplified his belief that a fine book demands good design, type, paper and presswork, rather than illustration and ornament. Baskerville's crisp, wide, legible type, dark ink, plate-pressed wove paper and generously spaced composition greatly advanced the tendencies already visible in the best work of Tonson and the Foulis brothers. His influence may be seen in the work of printers such as Bulmer, Bensley and Bell in Britain and of Bodoni in Italy and Didot in France.

Provenance

Acquired between 1772 and 1802. Recorded in RAA Library, Catalogue, 1802.

Binding Note

20th-century half calf, marbled-papered boards; red morocco spine-label lettered 'The Holy Bible', spine lettered 'John Baskerville'.

Subject

Christianity - Judaism
Hebrew literature
Greek literature - 1st century
Translations into English - Translations from Greek - Translations from Hebrew - Great Britain - 17th century
Pictorial works - Typography - Great Britain - 18th century

Contributors

John Baskerville, printer, publisher
Jean-Michel Moreau, draughtsman
Francis Hayman RA, draughtsman
Jean-Baptiste van Loo, source artist
Jean Baptiste Jouvenet, source artist
Louis-Claude Legrand, engraver
Westwood, engraver
Isaac Taylor the elder, engraver
James Caldwall, engraver
Richard Terrick Bishop of London