GRO #13

BOK.ENG.AD1566

Great Bible

Cromwell Bible

Whitchurch's Bible

Chained Bible

Cranmer's Bible

This Great Bible, printed by Myles Coverdale in Paris in 1539, was the first authorized edition of the Bible in English. Authorized by King Henry VIII of England, it was read in church services of the Church of England, and includes much of the Tyndale Bible with the objectable features revised.

This Bible has been separated into parts based on the books of the Old Testament (The Pentateuch, The Books, The Prophets) and the New Testament. Each separation is noted by a decorative page covered in various scenes from the Bible. Before the Old and New Testament there is a title page depicting Moses and Christ facing each other with Queen Elizabeth the I at the bottom.

This illustration not only shows the connections between the Old and New Testament, but also the importance of religion to English monarchs at the time. Queen Elizabeth I was a driving force behind the rise of England as a world superpower. "The policies of England in the latter half of the sixteenth century, when the nation rose to prominence in Europe, were her policies. The wisdom of most of those policies was her wisdom and that of councilors she appointed. Altogether she is one of history’s most remarkable women" (Ellis).

The Bible scene illustration page is missing before Genesis, and the title page for the Old Testament has been reconstructed by conservationists.
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Ellis, Robert P. 2020. “Elizabeth I.” Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia.

1566 AD

Myles Coverdale

England

16th Century

Print

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English

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Bible

The Great Bible. London: At the Cost and Charges of Rich. Carmarden, 1566.