Books and Manuscripts

First Edition of the King James Bible, Commonly Known as the "Authorized Version"

London: Robert Barker, 1611. First edition (with "he went into the citie" in Ruth iii. 15, three lines repeated in Exodus xiv. 16, and other points detailed in Darlow & Moule). Thick folio, 15 x 10 in. (381 x 254 mm). (xxxviii), 34, (1,426) pp.; final leaf (Aa6) supplied in facsimile. Text printed in gothic and roman types, in two columns within ruled border; calendar printed in red and black. Illustrated with an engraved general title-page by C(ornelis). Boel; 34 pp. of genealogical tables incorporating woodcut illustrations of Adam and Eve, Noah's Ark, the Tower of Babel, etc.; New Testament title-page with woodcut border; two-page map of Canaan supplied in facsimile; numerous woodcut initials, as well as head- and tail-pieces. Bound to style in full modern brown calf, stamped in gilt, red morocco spine label; all edges trimmed; general title-page worn, with many open tears at center, and laid down on heavy paper with some text filled in; several rust stains on title-page, diminishing over the following seven leaves, but affecting some text on first page of Dedication; wear and creasing along edges and in corners of prelims; repaired closed tear to bottom fore-edge, A2 in prelims; several leaves washed; varying degrees of dampstaining along top edge and within gutter of most leaves; scattered old mold residue in upper gutter of many leaves; top edge trimmed close, variously shaving ruled border and some letters in running headline, especially at front and at rear; six-inch repaired closed tear at bottom edge, Kk4 in Old Testament; small open tear in upper center of New Testament (NT) title-page, extending into subsequent two leaves (A2 and A3); bottom corner torn away, but not affecting text, B1 in NT; 2 3/4 in. closed tear at bottom center edge, B2 in NT; bottom of fore-edge and corner torn away, but not affecting text, X6 in NT; leaf Aa5 in NT very worn with loss in top edge. Herbert 309 (Darlow & Moule 240); ESTC S122347; PMM 114; Formatting the Word of God 9.1; Brake BHC-119

An exceedingly rare and almost-complete first edition of the King James Bible, often considered, "the only literary masterpiece ever to have been produced by a committee." Commonly known as the Authorized Version, this Bible was royally commissioned in the hopes of settling conflicts within the Church of England, between Puritans and Anglicans, as well as in the division between Bibles used by the clergy--the Bishop's Bible--and those used by laymen--the more compact and easier to read Geneva Bible. In 1604 King James gave enthusiastic support to the idea of a new translation after its suggestion by the leader of the Puritan party and President of Corpus Christi College, John Reynolds. The work was completed by nearly 50 translators, divided into six companies, who were each tasked with translating certain sections of the Scriptures. The six companies consulted a variety of works, including Hebrew and Greek sources, as well as the Bishop's Bible for the basic English text, and the Tyndale and Coverdale versions of the Geneva Bible. Although not mentioned, they also borrowed freely from the Catholic translation of the New Testament published in Rheims in 1582 (see lot 166). The primary work was completed from 1607-09, and was then sent to a committee of six at Stationer's Hall in London where a final revision took place for the better part of 1610. Two editions of the Bible were printed in 1611 and have come to be known as the "He" and "She" Bibles, for their respected readings in Ruth iii. 15: "he went into the citie," and "she went into the citie." These two versions were printed at two different offices, likely to speed up printing, and the discrepancy lies more in the ambiguity of the passage than perhaps any fault at the hands of the typesetter. While the Hebrew text says "he" went into the city, referring to Boaz, the context of the passage makes more sense with "she", referring to Ruth. While early bibliographers disputed the priority of these two versions, they now "generally agree that the folio 'He' Bible of 1611 is the first impression." (Darlow & Moule, p. 133).

Along with the publication of Shakespeare's First Folio, 12 years later in 1623, the King James Bible was extremely influential on the English language and helped shape literary language for generations to come. "No new English translation was produced until the Revised Version of 1881, and the influence of the Authorized Version may best be described in the words of G.M. Trevelyan. '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." (Printing and the Mind of Man, p. 69).

This copy is number 119 (of 198 copies) according to the Brake-Hellstern 2017 worldwide census of King James "He" Bibles.