Biblia Regia Printed on Vellum

Phoebus Focus XIII

The Phoebus Foundation possesses a sixteenth-century multilingual edition of the Bible in eleven impressive volumes printed on vellum. A religious treasure such as this could only have been produced for royalty. The title of this edition — the Biblia Regia (‘Royal Bible’) — irrefutably confirms this suspicion. The daring printer bold enough to embark on this incredible feat was none other than Antwerp’s Christophe Plantin (1520-1589).

The Biblia Regia is stunning in aesthetic terms, and its history is remarkable, but that’s not all. Without exaggerating, the publication itself can also be considered one of the greatest typographical achievements of the sixteenth century. It is the result of the successful combination of Plantin’s shrewd business acumen and craftsmanship, and the astounding philological work of a group of scholars. The story of Plantin’s Biblia Regia reads like a novel!