Article August 30, 1900 Issue

Six Gutenberg Bibles in New York

In honor of the five hundredth anniversary of the birth of John Gutenberg, or Johann Gensfleisch of Gutenberg, the inventor of typography, a celebration was begun on June. 25 in Mentz, Germany. The Saturday Review therefore gives a short description of the various examples of Gutenberg's press which are to be found in this city in public and private book collections. Outside of New York, the Saturday Review is not aware that Gutenberg's press is well represented in the various libraries throughout the country, the only specimen of his work being the "Catholicon" of Balbus de Janna, which the inventor and first practiser of typography is thought to have printed at his second press in 1460, a copy of which is one of the treasures in the magnificent library formed by John Carter Brown of Providence. The latter is the Nodhull copy, which fetched £310 in London in 1886.

At the present time there are in New York six copies of the Bible, which Gutenberg printed at Mentz between 1450 and 1455, without including the Kamensky copy of the Old Testament portion, which Bernard Quaritch bought for £760 at Sotheby's in February, 1884, and sold to Theodore Irwin of Oswego, whose collection was purchased by J. Pierpont Morgan this spring. This showing, the Review is confident, cannot be equaled by any other city in the world. First in the list, in order of time, comes the Wilks copy on paper, for which Wiley and Putnam paid £500 in London in 1847, securing it for James Lenox against the competition of Sir Thomas Phillipps, the famous English collector. Henry Steven's "Recollections of James Lenox" tells how Mr. Lenox at first considered his treasure a bibliographical white elephant, refusing to take it out of the Custom House. Later the distinguished bibliophile thought better of his purchase, which may be now seen at the Lenox Branch of the New York Public Library.

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