1589 FOLIO BIBLE 1641 GENEALOGY of MIELZINER, PHILIPSEN

As far as I’ve been able to determine, the Bible traveled with the family from Denmark to Berlin, and finally to the United States in about 1870. It descended through the family of Rabbi Mielziner of Cincinnati.

I couldn’t resist jumping to the back to show you the date: M.D.LXXXIX – 1589. You can also see the most recent genealogical information.

The earliest of the family information is laid down inside the front cover. It is from earlier documents – possibly even an earlier Bible, I’d think.

It was written in December of 1641. (I can begin to read some of the names, places and other information as the notations move into more modern times, but I’m sure you’ll be able, with a little study, to “translate” all of it.)

Just wait ‘til you see some of the fascinating woodcuts within the book. But note the name of Frederik II above. Unfortunately, he died less than a year before his Bible became a reality.

That’s one of my several most favorite woodcuts. Eve is coming out of Adam’s side as some of the animals witness the event: A cat, a pony, a rabbit and a parrot are in the foreground. The man in the moon even looks on. (There are some REALLY GREAT woodcuts in this book.)

Among the flaws: 3 MISSING PAGES AT THE END of New Testament~ Leaves 153, 154 & 156 are missing. Page 144 has tiny restoration & dark marking at bottom; Page 244 has a tiny hole; Page 323 has major ink smudge marks; Page 325 is printed at slight slant; and expect to come across other unremarkable flaws. I've gone through the Bible page by page, but I may have missed something.

The book is in 3 sections: Old Testament, Prophets & New Testament. Section 1 has 353 numbered leaves = 706 pages. Section 2 has 226 numbered leaves = 452 pages; Section 3 has 158 numbered leaves (MINUS 3 leaves/6 pages mentioned above) = 310 pages. TOTAL PAGES: 1468.

Here at 341, I have two "Prime Directives:"
First: I never, under any circumstances, use a reserve, and everything starts at $9, sometimes even less. And, I never end auctions early or use BIN.
Second: I don't clean, repair, or otherwise monkey around with anything. I push enough dust aside to note any flaws, but if I discovered it in some dusty attic, you can look forward to a little dust on it when it gets to your house. If it has a flaw or a wart, I'll tell you about it.
So rest easy and have some fun. Why not place a little tiny bid right now so's you don't forget about it later.

I almost forgot to show you the two fancy brass clasps. The one on the right is still attached and working. The other is loose.

CONDITION (COVER/BOARDS): Amazingly, all four brass decorative corner mounts are still with the Bible, as are the two brass clasps (although one has separated from its leather tab). The original leather-bound cover is well worn after about 420 years. Spine strip is missing about 1/4" at both top & bottom (at the first & 7th raised bands). Front cover is missing some sections of leather, and you can see the wooden board underneath. Leather is in process of deteriorating and is producing the characteristic surface powdering. I've done nothing to the book except to use Absorbene to remove surface soil. Anything further is in your hands or those of a professional antiquarian book restorer. The back cover, of course, is in much better condition than the front cover where hands & atmosphere have taken a toll over the centuries. Most books/Bibles of this age have either been recovered once or twice by now or are falling to pieces.

There is part of a page of genealogy from the 1880s. You’ll notice the names Bernhard (Bernhardt) and Philipsen. Sally Philipsen, the famous artist, is from this family, and you can see the given name Sally a few times here and there. In Denmark, that is a girl’s name.

You’ll also see the Mielziner name several times. Dr. Rabbi Moses Mielziner became president of Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1900. Then there are the “artistic” Mielziners; Jo and Leo – both listed artists as well. I have some paintings from this estate I’ll be offering a little later. (Leo’s mostly)

More notations are on the inside back cover. These are dated 1712, 1722 and 1750 – as well as mention of something happening in 1698. Wouldn’t you love to have seen what this family Bible has seen? Been in the room, so to speak? I’ll bet you’d have seen a LOT of famous people. The families mentioned were, for the most part, people of means.

Christianstad? I’m afraid I’m in the dark about that.

Obviously, the back has a lot less wear than the front cover.

That antiquarian paper is amazing. During these last 420 years, some creases, stains, tears, holes & smudges have made their appearances in the book--but nothing disastrous no matter how it sounds, no doubt due to the quality of the paper. Among others, the title page has had some professional restoration. NOTE: Pages in this Bible are numbered with each leaf (2 pages) given a number. i.e. Page 1 is what we nowadays think of as pages 1 & 2.

What a fantastic woodcut! It is a bunch of guys being confronted by the seven-headed beast of Revelation, and the sheep is jumping out of the sky. All that has something to do with the Antichrist and stuff like that, I think.

If you notice, most of the woodcut borders have nekked little cherubs here and there. I don’t know what’s going on in the one above. Looks like a scribe or a monk with a holy cow. Sorry. I’m just not much up on Christian mythology.

Some – you may not want to look too closely.

Skeletons – Mass grave – I just don’t know what’s going on there either. Sorry.

When I look at that one, all I can think of is “Time Machine.” I doubt that’s what it is, but it sure reminds me of one.

“In the beginning . . .”

If you have any questions, feel free to ask. If you would like to speak on the phone, that would be ok also. Send me an email, and I’ll send you my number. You’ll be thrilled with this early Bible – that I guarantee.

GOOD LUCK

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