Religion & Spirituality

A surviving Sedaik manuscript chest

Housed in a rare surviving manuscript case: a Burmese lacquered manuscript of a Buddhist monastic text. The manuscript case, called a sedaik, is rarely preserved alongside such manuscripts. Such cases were specially made for manuscripts held in monasteries and in the homes of wealthy Buddhist families; lavishly decorated and painted in gold, with five sides made up of a metal grille punched with geometric designs, the sedaik signifies the importance of the text housed inside. It had practical uses as well: raised off the floor on four legs, it kept manuscripts away from water damage, and its decorative metal grille was a useful defence against rats and mice.

First edition of the Desatir, containing large portions printed in a secret language – a fraudulent text of Zoroastrianism

First edition, the Desatir is a 16th century work claiming to date from the Sasanian period, one of several works originating from an Indian milieu of mystic Zoroastrianism which attempted to show that a mystical form of Zoroastrianism preceded the ‘historical’ form.

First edition of St. Augustine’s Letters.

Editio princeps of Saint Augustin’s influential collection of Letters, of significant historical and theological importance, instrumental in shaping the relationship between church and state and in arguing for a universal church against local particularism; his Letters are, along with the Civitate Dei and the Confessions (of which it later becomes a part of), the most important writings of Saint Augustine.

Pre-Gutenberg Chinese printing and silk weaving: a consecutive set of five volumes of the Garland Sutra in original brocade bindings

An extremely early Chinese block-printed suite of the Garland Sutra, beautifully preserved in the original, museum-quality medieval brocade bindings: an outstanding and near-unique example of Buddhist culture and the Chinese art of silk weaving as well as printing in the earliest decades of the 15th century.

The first Hagadah with Marathi translation, printed in Bombay, along with a Jewish Calendar in Marathi

The first edition of the first Bene Israel Haggadah printed in Bombay (and thus the first Indian Haggadah), the first to include a Marathi translation, the indigenous language of the Bene Israel Community of India, and the first illustrated Indian Haggadah. The work is lithographed throughout and contains a very peculiar, yet naïve, set of illustrations. Prepared by Haim Joseph Hallegua of Cochin. Hebrew and Marathi on facing pages. Title flanked by Moses and Aaron, 13 vignette illustrations of the Seder procedure, with a final illustration displaying the required Seder ritual elements of the Seder plate, depicted in a distinctly Indian style. The second work in the sammelband is a Jewish Calendar, also printed in Bombay and translated into Marathi.

The legend of the Swiss Saint Meinrad and the foundation of Einsiedeln Abbey.

First Latin edition, this small incunable contains the account of the life and martyrdom of St. Meinrad of Einsiedeln, illustrated with 21 fine, large woodcuts. Sebastian Brant's rare Latin edition is based on a 12th century manuscript.

A book for eternity

Unique prayer book manuscript on vellum, containing sixteen full-page illuminated engravings after Marten de Vos: a highly expressive devotional work of the waning 16th century. One of only eight known manuscripts by Hieronymus Oertl, it provides a “unique example of the art of book arts around 1600” (Baeyer, p. 6), highlighting the transitory period between the Middle Ages and the Baroque, between manuscript and printed book.

Extraordinary and monumental French medieval manuscript on vellum Life of Christ by Ludolph of Saxony, with other texts, including some by Jean Gerson

An exceptional large medieval manuscript on vellum, extending over 5 volumes, containing Saxony´s powerful and influential Life of Christ, with other texts, coming to us with an exceptional medieval provenance, and later in the collections of three prominent 19th century English booksellers and collectors (including Sir Thomas Phillips). The Vita Christi occupies roughly 90% of the 5 volumes, it is one of the most important works of literature of the Christian world.

Early edition of the Suma y Compendio, compiling uncommon works by Saint Teresa

Early edition of the Suma y Compendio, a collection of works mostly by Saint Teresa with added works, which includes the Suma y compendio de los grados de Oracion, the Siete meditaciones sobre el Pater Noster and Conceptos del Amor de Dios escritos por la S. Madre Theresa de Iesus, sobre algunas palabras de los cantares de Salomon. Rare, apparently no copy of this edition in the United States; second edition, which appears to be extended from the first.

The first Hebrew Bible in Spanish, prepared for the Jewish population that fled Spain – the desired issue with the Hebrew names

First edition of the Hebrew Old Testament in Spanish, known as the Biblia de Ferrara, produced for the use of the Spanish-speaking population that had fled 60 years before from Spain, fine copy of the most desired issue: with the publisher and printer’s names in their Jewish form (instead of the Christian names) and the Jewish date of 5513 (instead of 1553).

First edition of a seminal text for the development of 19th century Millerism and Seventh Day Adventists, written by a Jesuit

First edition, a seminal text for the development of 19th century Millerism and its spiritual inheritors, the Seventh Day Adventists, the Jehovah’s witnesses, written by Jesuit Lacunza under the pseudonym Josafat Ben-Ezra.

Extremely rare catechism printed in Tamil by the VOC, one of the earliest books printed in Ceylon

Exceptionally rare first edition of this pioneering effort of the Ceylonese press and a milestone for missionary printing in Tamil, spoken by the Tamil people of South Asia (namely India and Sri Lanka), with overtones of colonial politics and the economic interests of the VOC. Tamil is one of the longest-surviving classical languages in the world.

Abu Rumi's complete translation of the Bible in Amharic

First edition of the Gospels in Amharic. Abu Rumi (ca. 1750-1819) is remembered as the translator of the first complete Bible in Amharic, the national language of Ethiopia. Previously, only partial Amharic translations had existed, and the Ethiopian Bible existed only in Ge'ez, the ancient liturgical language of Ethiopia. Abu Rumi's story is recorded by William Jowett: he was educated in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, but it is not clear if he was a monk, priest, or had any official status within the church.