Owen Jones' Victoria Psalter W/ Original Relievo Binding Printed 1861

The Victoria Psalter, Illustrated by Owen Jones

A spectacular and richly illuminated edition of the Psalms of David, designed and chromolithographed by the celebrated Victorian designer Owen Jones and published circa 1861–1862. This is one of the most visually impressive 19th-century devotional works, produced as a prestige object for the Victorian middle and upper classes and dedicated to Queen Victoria herself.

This copy contains 52 leaves, each lavishly printed in full chromolithography with ornate borders, illuminated initials, and decorative panels. Every leaf features unique page ornamentation, a hallmark of Jones’s design philosophy and colour theory.

The book retains its original relievo binding — an embossed, sculptural style of binding over heavy boards, characteristic of the finest Victorian gift books. These bindings were produced using a specialised embossing press and are themselves highly collectable.

Condition

• Binding: Original relievo embossed leather boards, gilt edges, some expected age wear.

• Pages: Clean and bright, chromolithography vivid; light age-toning to margins in places. All original.

• Collation: 52 leaves complete and continuous from Psalm 1 to Psalm 150.

• Spine: Minor cracking at the very top and bottom.

• This specimen was previously repaired.

• There are added tissue guards to protect the leaves within.

About Owen Jones (1809–1874)

Owen Jones was one of the most influential designers of the Victorian era — an architect, theorist, typographer, and colour innovator. His landmark book The Grammar of Ornament (1856) shaped generations of designers and established many of the decorative principles of modern design.

Jones was a pioneer of chromolithography, insisting that high-quality colour printing could elevate the printed book to the level of medieval illuminated manuscripts. The Victoria Psalter is often regarded as one of his crowning achievements, combining meticulous ornament, vibrant colour, and cutting-edge 19th-century printing technology.

His work influenced Arts & Crafts designers, Art Nouveau artists, and even early modernists.

Historical Significance of the Victoria Psalter

• Produced during the height of Victorian decorative arts.

• Dedicated to Queen Victoria, lending the book its name and prestige.

• Printed by Day & Son, the foremost chromolithographers of the period.

• Created as a luxury devotional volume, intended to echo the splendour of medieval illuminated manuscripts.

• Each leaf features unique ornamental borders, showcasing Jones’s mastery of geometrical and floral patterns.

• Surviving copies — especially in their original bindings — are increasingly scarce.

Owen Jones aimed to merge medieval sensibility with industrial-age technology, and the Psalter represents this vision at its most mature.

Why Collectors Want This Book

Decorative Arts & Design Collectors
Jones’s ornamental work is foundational to Victorian design, making the Psalter a centrepiece in any decorative arts library.

Chromolithography Enthusiasts
This volume is one of the most ambitious chromolithographic projects of the 19th century.

Rare Book Collectors
Complete copies in original relievo bindings are increasingly uncommon.

Devotional & Biblical Book Collectors
Its illumination makes it a standout among 19th-century editions of the Psalms.

Art, colour theory, and design historians
The Psalter is a prime example of Jones’s colour principles in practice.

This is not merely a religious text — it is a museum-worthy artefact of Victorian book design.