Leaf from a Plantin Loubain Bible, 1565

Item — Box: 1, Folder: 13

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

From the Collection:

Sold as Otto F. Ege's Original Leaves from Famous Bibles: Nine Centuries, 1121-1935 A.D. Cleveland: Otto Ege, circa 1950, this collection consists of 37 original Bible leaves in mattes with descriptive labels. Three items are manuscript pages, while an additional 34 are printed. The leaves range in age from circa 1200 to 1935. During the years 1938-1950, Ege published portfolios under this title with 37, 50 and 60 leaves.

For preservation reasons, the leaves have been separated from their mattes, and enclosed in mylar. However, each matte and descriptive label has been retained with its original leaf where possible.

The descriptions consist mostly of transcriptions of the labels written by Ege.

Dates

Creation: 1565

Creator

From the Collection: Ege, Otto F. (Compiler, Person)
From the Collection: Duschnes, Philip C. (Compiler, Person)

Biographical / Historical

Ex officina Christophori Plantini

The Louvain Bible, edited by Johannes Hentenius, -practically a reprint of R. Stephanus’ Bible of 1538-40- was published by Christopher Plantin with the Summa Priviegii of King Philip of Spain. At the time this Bible was being printed, Plantin was issuing not only Bibles, but also popular literature in ten languages: Latin, Greek, Hebrew, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Flemish, Dutch and English. The polyglot staff of editors and compositors were forbidden, by posted notices, to discuss religious questions; probably because Plantin had been accused several times of being a heretic. Later, however, Plantin was appointed censor of the press. Founded in 1555, this famous press was suspended in 1867, whereupon the city of Antwerp converted it into a museum.