Bible Design and Binding

First Look: Deluxe Compact ESV (Sienna / Crossroads Design)

Thanks to the intrepid Scott Kay, we can take our first look at the Deluxe Compact ESV from Crossway in its TruTone Sienna (Crossroads) incarnation. This is the successor to the original Compact Thinline, with a new layout, slightly enlarged proportions and a sewn binding. If you ask me, it's a big improvement. Let's take a look:

Above: Each of the four editions currently available has a novelty cover, but the Sienna (Crossroads Design) option is the subtlest. I like the simulated grain and the variation in the brown color. And I can live with the design.

1961 NEB New Testament in Blue Morocco

Pushing fifty and rendered obsolete by an excellent revision, there's still something charming about the New English Bible. Maybe it's the text setting -- my favorite of all time -- but we'll get into that in a moment. For now, here's a fine example: a 1961 edition of the NEB New Testament bound in blue Morocco, still in beautiful shape. I found this recently on eBay and paid a whopping $10.

An Oxford Bible, Circa 1932

So how does a nicely-bound Bible age? That's what our friend Christian in Sweden wanted to know, so he snapped these photos of a 75-year-old Oxford Bible bound in goatskin. It's leather-lined with art-gilt (red under gold) edges. As you can see in the photos, it was published in 1932. The original owner recorded the dates of her conversion (November 7, 1933) and baptism (November 12, 1932).

Above: Full-yapp edges have an organic look, a far cry from machined uniformity.
Below: The art-gilt pages have held up over time.

Christian reports:

"The gold imprinting is just so good and nice, not faded even after 75 years. The full yapp edge is very supple still, even if it's worn in the edges and lost the black in certain parts. The covers are not so supple since they have a paper board between the leather lining and the cover. Still, it is bendable and I can say I would easily choose this Bible instead of most modern Bibles, even though this one is 75 years old!"

Above: A traditional double-column setting.
Below: A look at the inside cover.

Above: Printed in London, 1932.
Below: The vintage edition compared to a modern Cambridge NKJV.

The nice thing about these photos is that they suggest how much use you can expect from a well-made Bible. I don't know about you, but I'm more interested in a Bible that will be in one piece when I'm through with it than one that looks pretty out of the box. If you can have both in one package, so much the better.

Above: A detail of the grain.
Below: Compared to a modern Cambridge KJV.

Thanks, Christian, for sharing this find with the rest of us!

An Old Scofield Bound in Sealskin

These days calfskin is a somewhat rare material to bind a Bible in, and goatskin is positively exotic. But things were not always so. As recently as the mid-twentieth century, it was not uncommon for Bibles to be bound in skins like water buffalo and sealskin. This Time Magazine article from 1962 describes what Thomas Nelson was up to with the Revised Standard Version: "One year the company bought the entire North American catch of sealskin for bindings, had to turn to water buffalo hide from India when that ran out." Times were different. An Oxford Annotated RSV in French Morocco would have set you back $8.50, and Harper & Row offered a unique children's edition bound in watermarked sealskin. Imagine presenting your kid with such a thing now. Think of the baby seals!

Rev. Andy Chulka, pastor of Hope Bible Church and a reader of this blog, sent me some photos of a rare find made by a friend of his. This is a vintage Oxford Scofield KJV bound in sealskin and silk sewn. It was found in mint condition along with the original box and care instructions. In the past, I've seen a couple of well-worn sealskin covers, but this is my first glimpse of how they appeared new in box.

Above: The grain is quite distinctive. Andy describes the feel as "soft and rubbery," which is how I remember the old sealskins I've handled.

First Looks: Four from Allan's, Four from Cambridge

My wife Laurie is the first one to tell you, I'm no good at keeping secrets. It takes time to work up a review and do the photography. If I was patient and just a little bit cunning, I wouldn't blab about what's on the horizon -- but I can't help it. Here are some preliminary shots of eight editions that will be reviewed here in the coming weeks:

And if you're wondering exactly which ones those are, here they are in boxes:

So that's four Allan's Bibles soon to be reviewed. And there's more. We also have four from Cambridge, too!

Here they are all boxed up:

Needless to say, it's going to take some time to live with these a while, take the necessary photos, and formulate my reactions. But in the meantime I just wanted you to know what's in store. Oh, wait -- did I say four from Cambridge? Make that five. You'll have to sit tight to find out what the fifth one is. I have to preserve some sense of mystery, after all.

Welcome, New Readers!

Traffic doubled last week during my frenzy of reviewing, so I want to welcome new readers and let everyone know that there's more good stuff on the way. In the meantime, a couple of photos:

Above: The Personal Size Reference ESV with Black TruTone cover.

I've been using the Personal Size Reference ESV for daily reading since it arrived, and it just gets better and better. The TruTone feels great in the hand, and this form factor is perfect for reading. I'm getting used to the ration of type-size to column width. I'd prefer the type to be larger, but this is perfectly usable and I can appreciate the trade-offs involved in achieving a compact edition like this.

Above: Oxford's combined NRSV and Book of Common Prayer.

I've also been experimenting with a new camera lens, a 50 mm prime that I have to manual focus. The image above isn't tack-sharp, but I'm getting the hang of it. You'll be seeing more of the results in future reviews.

I'm in the Cambridge Catalogue

This is too much fun not to share:

The 2008 Cambridge UK Bible Catalogue features a nice big quote from my review of the NASB Pitt Minion wide-margin edition. Considering how much time I've spent fawning over Cambridge catalogues, it's a little surreal to see my name in there. (Not melting clocks surreal; just mildly euphoric surreal.)

First Look: Personal Reference ESV

My Personal Reference ESV is in the mail, but thanks to Scott Kay I can share a few photos of the genuine leather edition. First, let's take a look at the inside:

Scott placed a Compact ESV on top for comparison purposes. As you can see, the Personal Reference is a true single column, paragraphed text, with references on the inside margin. The type size is small (7.4 pt) but the proportions look good to me. Scott also confirmed that what Crossway said about the paper quality is true: it seems better than the stuff they've used in the past. Also, he saw visible stitching between the pages, and no sign of this being a glue-and-stitch hybrid. So we know for sure that the genuine leather edition is sewn -- insert sigh of relief here.

Things To Come

If you enjoyed this week's review of the Allan's Bold Print Reference NIV, rest assured: the fun isn't over yet. As the photo below suggests, there are a couple more reviews in the pipeline.

On top, the Allan's TNIV. In the middle, the Bold Print Reference from yesterday. On bottom, the Allan's Cross Reference Edition NIV with Concordance, bound in grainy brown calfskin. Stay tuned for full reviews next week!

Cambridge 1662 Book of Common Prayer (Enlarged Edition)

Since the Book of Common Prayer has come up before, I thought I'd share a couple of photos featuring the enlarged edition of Cambridge's 1662 BCP, bound in brown goatskin with art-gilt edges. Aside from the blurred imprinting -- a common complaint these days -- it's beautiful. I wish they offered a Bible in the same brown goatskin.

More Photos on Flickr

Not to overwhelm you with photos, but ...

I'm continuing to update the Bible photography on the Flickr site -- mainly images from past reviews that I figure people might like to see in higher resolution. To explore everything, you can follow this link to the relevant sets. (By the way, that's a photo of the Cambridge NASB wide margin in goatskin.)

A Sneak Peak at Some Not-Yet-Reviewed Editions

Mind if I share a few photos? These are all editions I haven't reviewed here yet -- some of them might make an appearance, though. In the meantime, I figured it wouldn't hurt to have a look!

Above, a Cambridge Cameo KJV bound in stiff burgundy calfskin. No, I'm not a fan of burgundy in general, but this is one of the most attractive examples I have come across.