Friar Jerome's Beautiful Book

Boston/New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1896. Book. Very Good. Hardcover. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. The book is in very good condition, some shelf rubbing most apparent on the edges of the book, a small amount of leather has been lost on the top and bottom of the spine and fore-edge, a few minor stains. The front cover is loosening inside from the spine but remains attached. Apart from some minor stains and foxing on the front and back paste-downs and their opposite pages the text and images inside appear clean and clear throughout. 'This tribute to St. Jerome, "one of the first great scholars of the Christian church" (Robert Ellsberg), is a vision of the fourth-century Doctor of the Church's agony and ecstasy as he sat down to write his Latin translation of the Bible. Encouraged by Pope Damasas to undertake the translation of the Greek Septuagint, Jerome exceeded the Holy Father's advice: "Rather than simply translate the Septuagint into Latin, Jerome went back to the original Hebrew. It was an overwhelming project for any single man, and it was to occupy him for the rest of his life" (Robert Ellsberg). Jerome's solitary labors resulted in the creation of the Latin Vulgate-the official text of the Church for over 1500 years. The poem, by Thomas Bailey Aldrich of the Atlantic Monthly, is thought to be one of the first books printed under the supervision of Bruce Rogers at the Riverside Press. An early triumph for the Boston artist William Snelling Hadaway, who designed the illustrations and binding shortly before he departed American to live and work for decades in England and India.' Unpaginated. 4.5 x 8 inches. May require additional postage. This listing was made by a small independent book shop. We carefully inspect every single book we list and give accurate descriptions. If you require we will promptly send pictures of listed books upon request. .