“The Most Singular Bibliographic Curiosity”

Charles Bombaugh’s Gleanings for the Curious from the Harvest-fields of Literature describes a remarkable book, apparently dating to the 16th century, whose every letter was hand-cut in vellum with a penknife:
The most singular bibliographic curiosity is that which belonged to the family of the Prince de Ligne, and is now in France. It is entitled Liber Passionis Domini Nostri Jesu Christi, cum Characteribus Nulla Materia Compositis. This book is neither written nor printed! The whole letters of the text are cut out of each folio upon the finest vellum; and, being interleaved with blue paper, it is read as easily as the best print. The labor and patience bestowed in its completion must have been excessive, especially when the precision and minuteness of the letters are considered. The general execution, in every respect, is indeed admirable; and the vellum is of the most delicate and costly kind. Rodolphus II. of Germany offered for it, in 1640, eleven thousand ducats, which was probably equal to sixty thousand at this day. The most remarkable circumstance connected with this literary treasure is, that it bears the royal arms of England, but it cannot be traced to have ever been in that country
A Dartmouth librarian spent twenty years trying to track down this impressive object, to no avail. However, the Dartmouth library does own a miniature book measuring 92 mm by 68 mm that was created in a similar manner in 1600. Two pages of that book are shown above.
* Previously in the Proceedings: The Feather Book of Dionisio Minaggio, Anthropodermic Bibliopegy and the Highwayman’s Confession, Papercuts of Peter Callesen, A Minor History of Miniature Writing
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