Bible. New Testament. English, Tyndale's version

8vo (135 x 93mm.), 238 out of approximately 428 leaves, black letter, full-page containing 36 lines, lines measuring 60mm. long, commentary and notes in the margins, asterisks relating to marginal notes with 5 points, woodcut illustration at the beginning of St. Mark, woodcut end-piece at the end of St. John, woodcut initials (that at the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles 31mm. high, aside 10 lines of text), early eighteenth-century half-calf, marbled boards, lacking all before E2 (text begins towards the end of Matthew 24) and all after m8 (just after the beginning of The Epistle of Paul to the Colossians), K2 and Q6 heavily torn with significant loss to text, small hole to margins of leaves L6-8, tears to outer margins of N11, e7 and h2  affecting marginal commentaries, a few other tears and holes to some pages occasionally affecting a few words, binding expertly repaired and rebacked preserving portions of the spine, corners also expertly repaired

Bought by the present owner in a second-hand bookshop, Cambridge, c.1966

a variant of DMH 22-25 (STC 2835, 2835.2, 2835.3, 2835.4)

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."

AN UNRECORDED VARIANT OF ONE OF THE THREE OR FOUR EARLY OCTAVO EDITIONS OF TYNDALE'S NEW TESTAMENT PRODUCED IN CONTINENTAL EUROPE IN 1536, THE YEAR OF HIS MARTYRDOM.

Eighty-three per cent of the King James (Authorized) Version New Testament is directly from Tyndale. There are three or perhaps four known octavo editions of this date (see DMH, pp.13-14), produced in Antwerp or France (two of these are highly imperfect). The text agrees with the "G.H." edition of 1535 (DMH 15), which was the last revised by the translator himself before his arrest and execution in 1535/6. These editions agree closely but differ in many small points such as collation of signature, the number of lines to a full page, the length of lines, the points in the marginal asterisks, and the size of woodcuts. The present copy, while very similar in format, size of print area and typeface does not exactly match any of the other known editions, all of which themselves survive in very few institutional locations. The leaves present here collate as E2-E8 F-Y⁸ a-m⁸.

"Tyndale's gift to the English language is unmeasurable. He translated into a register just above common speech, allied in its clarity to proverbs. It is a language which still speaks directly to the heart. His aims were always accuracy and clarity. King James's revisers adopted his style, and his words, for much of the Authorized Version. At a time when European scholars and professionals communicated in Latin, Tyndale insisted on being understood by ordinary people...He gave the Bible-reading nation an English plain style. It is a basis for the great Elizabethan writers, and there is truth in the remark ‘without Tyndale, no Shakespeare’..." (David Daniell, Oxford DNB)

"Lord, open the king of England's eyes" (Tyndale's cry as he was strangled before being burnt at the stake, recorded by Foxe, ed. Pratt, 5.127)