Rare English Bibles on display in Troy today | Arts & Culture

Troy Public Library and the Troy Arts Council will host a rare collection of early English Bibles and psalters from the private collection of Michael Morgan, Atlanta, on December 7th, 2012 from 9 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.

Rare Bibles and artifact psalters – some over 470 years old – will be on display at Troy Public Library as part of a special one-day exhibit sponsored by the Troy Arts Council. Of particular interest will be an original first edition King James Bible.

During the year 2011, and continuing through the coming year, the English-speaking churches celebrated the 400th anniversary of the printing of the King James Bible in 1611. It was not a single effort, but the culmination of nearly a century of translation and revision of the Scriptures, beginning at the dawn of the Reformation, and continuing today. Included in the exhibit will be versions by John Wycliffe, the “Morningstar of the English Reformation;” William Tyndale, who was burned as a heretic for his translation of the New Testament; Miles Coverdale, the priest who gave us the first complete printed English Bible; the Great Bible of Henry the Eighth; the version done by the English and Scottish refugees during the reign of “Bloody Mary;” and the first Catholic Bible in English.

Editions of the King James Bible will include the first printing of 1611; all of the major revisions from 1616 to 1769; some spectacularly illustrated editions; and a few interesting association copies (including two 1613 printings which once belonged to President Franklin Pierce and to Mary Phillips, the last woman in England to be burned as a witch in 1705!).

Congregational singing in English churches began with metrical Psalms, and there will be several notable editions from 1565 to the 18th century.

In addition to the Bible display, Morgan will give a brief public lecture at 4:00 in the library, where he will share the fascinating and colorful history of the Bible in English.

Michael Morgan serves as organist at Central Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, as well as Musician-in-Residence at Columbia Theological Seminary. His personal collection of English Bibles, New Testaments, and Psalms is not the largest in the country (at some 4,000 volumes), but is perhaps the most comprehensive in its scope, with virtually every English version represented. 
His own version of the Psalms for singing, Psalter for Christian Worship, was published by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in 1999, and revised in 2010.

“Hearing the seldom-told story of the English Bible, and seeing the original books, is a rare experience. I hope that you and your friends will be able to join us on December 7th as we celebrate this most influential document in our culture.” – Michael Morgan.

For more information, contact John Jinright at 334-670-3593 or email jjinrig@troy.edu.