The Book of Common Prayer.

BASKERVILLE'S EDITION BOUND BY THE GREEK-KEY BINDER

The Book of Common Prayer, And Administration of the Sacraments, And Other Rites and Ceremonies of the Church, According to the Use of The Church of England: Together with the Psalter or Psalms of David, Pointed as they are to be sung or said in Churches.

8vo. [234 x 153 x 50 mm]. Contemporary binding of greenish blue goatskin, the covers with a gilt tooled border of a Greek-key and dotted roll used twice and a chain-and-ball roll. Smooth spine divided into six gilt panels by a Greek-key roll flanked by solid fillets running horizontally and the Greek-key and dotted roll and the chain-and-ball roll running vertically, the headcaps tooled with a hatched and zig-zag roll, the edges of the boards with a hatched roll, the turn-ins and matching inside joints with the Greek-key and dotted roll and the chain-and-ball roll used twice, marbled endleaves, gilt edges with semi-circular gauffering at the corners and adjacent to the headcaps. (Slightly rubbed).
Cambridge: printed by John Baskerville, Printer to the University; by whom they are sold, and by B. Dod, Bookseller, in Ave-Mary Lane, London, 1762

Gaskell, John Baskerville, A Bibliography, 19. The third edition of Baskerville's octavo Book of Common Prayer, priced at 8s 6d unbound. It has the "occasional prayers", U7-2A7 and 2Q-2T, which were printed for only part of the edition. Occasional slight soiling and minor creasing, but a fine copy.

The binding is highly unusual, with the design taking its form from the Greek-key and ball-and-chain rolls, with no lettering or hand tools other than the semi-circular gauffering on the edges. I have never seen its like before.

Bookplate of Robert J. Hayhurst.

Stock no. ebc7778