TITLE:

1615 BISHOPS’ NEW TESTAMENT Robert Barker Printing Very Late Bishops Bible NT & Psalms Herbert 344 Early English Bible

DESCRIPTION

"1615 The New Testament of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ

Printed at London by Robert Barker Bishops’ Text Herbert 344"

Offered here is an exceptionally rare 1615 Bishops’ Version New Testament, printed in London by Robert Barker, Printer to the King’s Majesty. This edition is catalogued as Herbert 344, and represents one of the latest surviving printings of the Bishops’ Bible tradition, produced four years after the King James Version had already become the newly authorized text.

This is a New Testament–only issue (as Herbert notes), often produced in small “pocket” format for personal use, typically bound with a Book of Psalms, as this copy is.
Bishops’-text NTs from this late date are extremely scarce, since the translation was already being phased out and replaced by the KJV.

A remarkable survival from the final years of pre–King James Version English biblical printing.

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL DETAILS

• Title: The New Testament of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ

• Translation: Bishops’ Version

• Printer: Robert Barker, London

• Date: 1615

• Reference: Herbert 344

• Format: Small-format / pocket-sized

• Contents:

  • New Testament Bishops’ text

  • Psalms

CONDITION

• Binding: Sympathetic binding with original cover panels/newer spine, has some metal work (latches no longer apparent, however fittings are still there)

• NT Title page: missing

• Book of Psalms title page: Missing lower half

• Interior condition: foxing, staining, 

• Notes, marks, or inscriptions:

History of early 17th-Century England:

This New Testament was printed during a pivotal moment in English religious and political life. The year 1615 falls under the reign of King James I (1603–1625), a period marked by:

• The rise of the King James Bible (first printed in 1611)

• Increasing uniformity in the Church of England

• Widespread use of personal devotional books in small, portable formats

• The last echoes of Elizabethan religious printing traditions

The early 17th century saw London’s printing industry shifting rapidly toward the newly authorized KJV, yet older translations such as the Bishops’ Bible continued in circulation for a few more years—especially in small-format, affordable editions. This 1615 volume is therefore part of the final transitional years between the older Elizabethan Bible and the now-standard KJV.

History of the Bishop's Bible:

The Bishops’ Bible was first published in 1568 under the direction of Archbishop Matthew Parker, who sought a Church of England alternative to the popular but Calvinistic Geneva Bible. It was the official Bible for use in English churches throughout the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

Key features of the Bishops’ Bible tradition:

• First issued in 1568, revised in 1572

• Printed in large folios for church reading and smaller editions for private use

• Served as the base text for the translators of the King James Version (1611)

• Often printed in black-letter (Gothic) type, even into the 17th century

• Gradually displaced by the King James Version after 1611

By 1615, when this New Testament was printed, the Bishops’ text was nearly extinct. Only a handful of small-format reprints—like this very copy—survived as late commercial remnants of the Elizabethan biblical printing tradition.

Your volume is part of the last generation of Bishops’-text New Testaments ever printed.

About Robert Barker:

Robert Barker (d. 1645) was one of the most significant printers in English history. His press produced:

• The 1611 King James Bible (both the “He” and “She” variants)

• Numerous reprints of the Bishops’ Bible, Geneva Bible, and small-format Testaments

• Statutes, proclamations, and official royal documents

As King’s Printer, Barker held the exclusive privilege of printing the Bible in England. His London press was enormous by the standards of the day, filled with:

• Black-letter type inherited from earlier Elizabethan printers

• Decorative woodcut borders and initials carried over from 16th-century Bible production

• Skilled compositors who produced everything from folio Bibles to miniature NT editions

A 1615 Barker-printed Bishops’ New Testament is therefore both:

• A relic of the old Elizabethan biblical tradition, and

• A product of the press that created the King James Bible

A highly desirable intersection for collectors of early English scripture.

Dimensions:

• Weight - 515g
• Height - 15.5cm
• Width - 10cm
• Thickness - 6.5cm