20th Century Bookbindings

  1903

The Book of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, and Other Rites and Ceremonies of the Church, According to the Use of the Church of England; Together with the Psalter or Psalms of David, Pointed as they are to be Sung or Said in Churches; But without the Calendar, Occasional Services, and Articles of Religion. The Book of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, and Other Rites and Ceremonies of the Church, According to the Use of the Church of England; Together with the Psalter or Psalms of David, Pointed as they are to be Sung or Said in Churches; But without the Calendar, Occasional Services, and Articles of Religion.

This miniature prayer book is from 1903, made of silver, leather, and paper. Similarly to the other miniature book in this collection we were able to identify that this book was made in 1903. The cover is a solid piece of silver depicting five angels surrounded by clouds. On the bottom of the cover are engravings of the initials “G & CLᵀ”, next to the initials, even smaller, are an anchor, lion, and the letter g. These letters and small symbols are so small a magnifying glass is needed to make out what they are. 

The initials engraved on the cover, compared to other similar books, seem to be unique to each book owner. The symbols, however, seem to be the same except for the last letter depicted. The anchor symbolizes anchoring yourself in christianity, as well as a symbol of hope for salvation. Chirstians used the anchor to symbolize anchoring yourself to Christ when the “seas of life are rough and windy”, which makes sense for this symbol to be depicted on a common prayer book. The lion in christianity usually symbolizes Christ as a lion and is also referred to as the king of the jungle, associated with strength, so it is no surprise that christians would use the lion to symbolize Christ. 

The angels or cherubs depicted are based on Joshua Reynolds' A Child’s Portrait in Different Views: Angel’s Head’s. Joshua’s work was created in 1786-7 depicting five year old Lady Frances Gordon. Reynold’s painting was the work that put him on the map and the image appeared in The Times, and was exhibited at the Royal Academy.

 

 

 1903

The Book of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, and Other Rites and Ceremonies of the Church, According to the Use of the Church of England; Together with the Psalter or Psalms of David, Pointed as they are to be Sung or Said in Churches; But without the Prefaces, Portions of the Calendar, Some of Occasional Services, and Articles of Religion. The Book of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, and Other Rites and Ceremonies of the Church, According to the Use of the Church of England; Together with the Psalter or Psalms of David, Pointed as they are to be Sung or Said in Churches; But without the Prefaces, Portions of the Calendar, Some of Occasional Services, and Articles of Religion. The Book of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, and Other Rites and Ceremonies of the Church, According to the Use of the Church of England; Together with the Psalter or Psalms of David, Pointed as they are to be Sung or Said in Churches; But without the Prefaces, Portions of the Calendar, Some of Occasional Services, and Articles of Religion.

This book is another miniature prayer book from 1903, it is made of leather, bronze, and paper. The front cover is completely metal with a botanical motif surrounding the center area, where either the title or family crest would be. It is unsure if there originally was anything in the center or if it has been damaged in some way that we cannot see the original text. There seems to be initials and other small text engraved into the bottom of the cover, but it has also been damaged.

We were able to identify that this book was made in 1903, as we found another miniature book with the same illustration on the first page that was not common in other editions. Looking at other miniature common prayer books from the same period, it seems like this one might have been custom made as there is no other book we could find with the same design, let alone the same kind of metal. This kind of miniature book cover usually would be made from silver, but this one is made from bronze which is not typical of this specific kind of book.

The front cover being completely metal is typical of late 1800’s and early 1900’s as that is when the style shifted in popularity favoring solid metal covers. The botanical and floral motifs were also common between 1890 and 1910, which is referred to as the Art Nouveau style. Even though the metal cover and botanical motifs were popular during the time, it seems that this specific design was not as common as the other miniature book, Prinster 49, with the angel iconography. 

20th Century Bookbindings