{Ed. Note: A day after posting this beautiful Arion Press edition of The Psalms of David, I saw another edition of The Psalms of David, this one a first edition by Samuel Woodford (1636-1700), from 1667. See at the bottom of this post for pictures of it. I do not know much about it, other than it looked and felt amazing for its age. If you have interest, called Mike Riley at the Book Gallery in Phoenix.}
Yesterday readers of Books and Vines were able to see two of the greatest fine press bibles ever produced, the Doves Press and Arion Press Bibles. Contributor ‘dlphcoracl’ also sent me a number of pictures from the 1977 Arion Press edition of The Psalms of David and Others. It is interesting to compare this edition to the aforementioned bibles, as well as to the Limited Editions Club Genesis previously reviewed.
While only the fifth book produced by Arion Press, The Psalms of David and Others clearly shows the outstanding craftsmanship that has been the hallmark of Arion Press ever since. In the pictures below, the apparent smudging and uneven coloration of the binding and covers of the Arion Press “Psalms of David’ is not due to a less than stellar copy. Rather, this is a characteristic of the vellum used in the binding and board corners and it is a natural rather than an acquired phenomenon, inherent in the vellum itself.
About the Edition
- 13-3/4 by 9 inches; the main volume is 192 pages; the companion volume is 44 pages
- Translated by Arthur Golding (1536-1605)
- Companion volume containing Golding’s “Epistle Dedicatory” from Calvin’s Commentaries (1571), introduction, notes, and glossary
- Edited by Richard G. Barnes
- Printed by Andrew Hoyem with help from George F. Ricthie and George Shakespear (compositors) and Glenn Todd (pressman)
- Type is handset Goudy New Style for the test with Trajan Capitals for the title and initials, printed by letterpress on dampened T. Edmonds mould-made paper
- Five illuminated initials in raised gold and colors at the openings of the five books of the Psalms are by Thomas Ingmire
- Bound with a vellum spine and corners, with grey Twinrocker handmade paper for the sides; the companion volume is sewn in grey Twinrocker handmade paper
- Both volumes are contained in a grey cloth slipcase
- Limited to 200 copies
Pictures
Pictures of 1667 Edition
Blast you Chris! Yet another book I was forced to buy after reading your blog! And to make it worse, while searching for this book online I came across another two that I also could not pass up, leaving an enormous hole in my pocket yet again! Michael
ps. just to return the favor, the other two books are the Psalms of the Singer David published by John Henry Nash and Genesis by Harold Berliner with illustrations by Helen Siegel (http://www.vampandtramp.com/finepress/b/harold-berliner.html). The last line of Berliner’s discussion of the book is one I can well identify with!!
Harold Berliner: “I’d like to tell you more about Genesis, which took 20 years. First look inside the cover of one for Professor Zaph’s commentary on it. Then you should know nearly all the colored pages were printed from hand carved wooden blocks, by Helen Siegl. I know of only one other place where they used such carvings since perhaps 1600. This is my friend Hans-Ulrich who bought my casting equipment and took it to his shop in Switzerland.
“Then the type setting here was done on our Monotypes, and took a long time, as did the printing, registering these wooden blocks while keeping the ink in just the right quantity. As expensive as the book is, we lost money on this great project, but the satisfaction made it worth it.”
I always wanted to see that version by Harold Berliner, looks great.
These elephantine books are gorgeous. I have the Folio Society LE of the Eric Gill The Four gospels, but while a beautiful production with the Gill Engravings, it can’t compare to the Arion Press editions. Thanks for sharing.