“A SOURCE OF SPIRITUAL INFORMATION… SECOND ONLY TO THE BIBLE”: THE IMPORTANT 1662 EDITION OF THE BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER, IN INTRICATELY EMBROIDERED CONTEMPORARY VELVET BINDING

BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER. The Book of Common Prayer And Administration of the Sacraments… London: by His Majesties’ Printers, 1662. Quarto, contemporary full red embroidered velvet over wooden boards, raised bands. Housed in a custom chemise and clamshell box.

The authoritative and influential 1662 revision of the Book of Common Prayer—arguably the most important edition of the prayer book, the foundation of the Anglican Communion’s shared liturgical life since the Restoration—in an ornately embroidered velvet binding.

The beautiful and dignified language of the Book of Common Prayer, first issued in 1549, has considerably influenced ecclesiastical practice and has been “a source of spiritual inspiration… for most Englishmen second only to the Bible” (PMM 75). The prayer book, however, was “effectively proscribed from about 1641” during the English Civil War; “in that year many copies were destroyed, and in 1645 its use became a penal offence” (Griffiths, 8). Upon the restoration of King Charles II, Parliament made arrangements for a revised prayer book, which saw publication in early August 1662. Most notably, this new edition added an Office for the Baptism of Adults as well as Forms of Prayer to be Used at Sea; adopted the language of the King James Bible (1611) for the Sentences, Epistles and Gospels; and restored the so-called “black rubric” explaining that the veneration given to the Host in Holy Communion was not to be interpreted as an affirmation of the bodily or “corporal presence” of Christ in the Eucharist (the rubric instead affirms Christ’s “real and substantial presence”). The 1662 edition of the Book of Common Prayer still serves as the common basis of the Anglican Communion’s liturgical life. No major attempt at revision would emerge until 1928, and while subsequent editions have been approved by the Church, the 1662 edition is the last edition to have received Parliament’s approval. “Although for centuries leather was the most common material for covering a book, many other materials were used, including various metals, woods, ivory and a rich variety of textiles. Beginning in the 14th century royal and noble collectors often used silk brocade to cover their valuable manuscripts. By the 15th century these cloth covers were embroidered with fanciful designs or the owner’s insignia… While cloth and embroidered bindings fell from favor on the continent in the 16th century, they remained popular in England until the Restoration” (Bridwell Library, Southern Methodist University). This copy of the Restoration prayer book, then, represents the waning trend of embroidered bindings in England. Each board bears finely embroidered frames and a figure of Christ as Salvator Mundi (Savior of the World)—his right hand raised in blessing, his left holding a globe surmounted by a cross (the globus cruciger)—done in wire and silver and gold threads. With ornamental woodcut initials, head- and tailpieces. Text in Gothic type. Griffiths 1662:1 (state 3). Wing B3622. Contemporary owner inscriptions to title page, one of which is largely effaced.

Scattered light foxing and marginal dampstaining. Minor loss to top margins of last four leaves. Title page mounted. Marginal restoration to leaf [Q6]. Mild wear to velvet, some age-wear to embroidery. A lovely copy of a significant edition of the prayer book in a contemporary, elaborately embroidered binding.