Bible. English, Geneva version.

4to (234 x 157mm.), first Geneva edition, text in double columns, divided into verses, printed marginalia, arguments, references and contents before chapters in italics, woodcut on New Testament title depicting the flight from Egypt, woodcuts within text, four maps on separate leaves, a few manuscript notes in Latin in an early hand, contemporary or near-contemporary calf, brass corner-pieces and central lozenges with intricate leafy and floral decorations, all with bosses, these between gilt ornaments and initials of early owner "W. S." (probably "W. Stonehouse", see Provenance below), clasps on lower cover, 7 leaves with manuscript notes (probably in Stonehouse's hand) bound in at the end (entitled "A Harmonie of the Ghospells, as the Histories of Christ may be read in them after the right order of Time"), rebacked with morocco spine and similar repairs to edges of upper cover, some further wear to covers, new endpapers, lacking general title, some repairs to early leaves, Address and Epistle in Preliminaries bound in reverse order, some slight worming to Preliminaries and Old Testament leaves affecting some words, some headlines cut close or slightly shaved, occasional staining to margins, slightly browned, lacking one of the maps, some repairs to maps and two torn with slight loss

"W. Stonehouse...", early ownership signature at the top of the recto of the Address leaf at the beginning (with price paid of 16 shillings), and his initials (or possibly those of a relative) in gilt either side of brass lozenges on covers; "Ellen Hodgson", ownership signature on verso of final leaf dated 1759;  "H. Smith", ownership signature dated 1780 on upper paste-down; his great-nephew H. Alrich Cotton, ownership signature dated 1880 on same

DMH 107;  STC 2093

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, when appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

First edition of the revolutionary "Geneva" Bible, which for at least three generations maintained its supremacy as the "Bible of the people". Its phrases find an echo in Scripture quotations from Shakespeare to Bunyan, and comparison with the King James Bible of 1611 "shows that is translators ... were more influenced by the Geneva than by any other English version" (DMH, p.62)

The Geneva Bible was revolutionary in a number of ways. It was the first English Bible to employ roman type and to divide chapters into verses for ease of reference, but its sense of freshness extended beyond the purely typographical. It appeared following an initiative by William Whittingham, who had married into Calvin's family, and both the text and notes are steeped in Calvanistic influences. In the New Testament "elder" and "congregation" replace "priest" and "church", and the notes to the Apocalypse are stringently anti-papist; for instance the scarlet woman of Revelation 17:4 is identified as "the Antichrist, that is, the Pope with the whole bodie of his filthie creatures". It also includes, as did the Estienne edition of 1550 which was its greatest influence, references to variant readings from manuscripts including the sixth-century Codex Bezae. The illustrative cycle, with its emphasis on the tabernacle, also mirrors the Estienne edition and the translators' overwhelming preoccupation with the Law and the construction of the Temple (or the Church) typified by the dedication letter in which Queen Elizabeth is exhorted to model herself on Zerubbabel the rebuilder of the Temple. The Geneva version is sometimes given what Herbert describes as the "absurd title" the "Breeches Bible" because of the rendering of Genesis 3:7. Instead of the word "aprons" used in some other English versions at this verse, the Geneva reads, "and they sewed fig tre leaues together, and made them selues breeches".