Leaf from the Pearl Bible, 1653

Item — Box: 2, Folder: 21

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: 1653

Creator

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

Biographical / Historical

London, Printed by John Field, Printer to the Parliament

This edition, commonly called Pearl Bible, no doubt on account of its being the first English Bible to use the diminutive size type generally known by that name. Many omissions and printer’s errors occur: 1 Corinthians vi. 9: “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall inherit the kingdom of God?” It is also said that Field received £1500 from the independents to corrupt a text in Acts vi. 3 (by printing a “ye” instead of “we”) to sanction the right of the people to appoint their pastors.

(Darlow and Moule 496)