When you hold a miniature book in your hand, it is like holding a jewel. A miniature book is usually no bigger than three inches (76 millimeters) tall, and although some need magnification to be viewed properly, most can be read with the naked eye. Dating as far back as 2500 BCE, Sumerian clay tablets with cuneiform writing are considered the prototype for miniature books ...
Read more about Miniature Books
Our miniature books are listed below. You may also browse our miniature books by publisher or by century.
(Los Angeles): William Cheney, 1975. (30)ff. The famous verse from "A Apple Pie, B Bit It, C Cut It," etc. is illustrated with large calligraphic-style letters in this micro-miniature book. It is the smallest book printed in California and was executed by William Cheney for Dawson's Book Shop. A very..... More
N.p. (1930). (28)ff. An informative watercolor manuscript describing the wing and rudder markings of aircraft from the United States, Latin America, Asia, and Europe. Most of the markings date from around the end of World War I, charting the rise of military aviation. The wing marking included under the description..... More
Wein (Vienna): Weidman, J., (1886). (68)pp. Begins with eleven portraits of famous women, including the ballerina Fanny Elssler, the opera singer Amalie Materna, and the actress Charlotte Wolter, each accompanied by a caption. The rest of the almanac provides charts of saints' days, a list accounting the number of years..... More
(Vienna): K.K. Hofbibliothek, (1912). 22; (126)pp. A facsimile of Viennese printer Ludwig Bonnoberger's famous prayer book of 1607, presented to a gathering of bibliophiles at the Imperial Court Library in September 1912. Bound in buff cloth with interwoven silver threads. All edges are gilt and gauffered, with two indented circles..... More
Wien: (Lichtdruck der K.K. Graphischen Lehr- und Versuchsanstalt), (1912). 22; (126)pp. A facsimilie of Viennese printer Ludwig Bonnoberger's famous prayer book of 1607, presented to a gathering of bibliophiles at the Imperial Court Library in September 1912. Bound in buff cloth with interwoven silver threads. All edges are gilt and..... More
(Exeter, NH): C. Norris & Co., 1812. 142pp. A charming thumb Bible, with significant stories told in prose and supplements with references to verses. Bound in full brown leather with gilt decorations to spine and covers, including the monogram "E. L." to upper cover. Rear flyleaf torn and small chip..... More
Oxford: Oxford University Press, (c. 1900). 576pp. An edition of the Church of England's Book of Common Prayer. Bound in full black leather with gilt tooling to upper cover, spine, and inner edges of covers. All edges red. The volume is in such fine and unsullied condition likely because it..... More
Watertown, MA: Anne and David Bromer, 1977. (24)pp., frenchfold. From a deluxe edition of twenty-five copies, signed by the illustrator, Sarah Chamberlain, this is the publisher's copy. With an extra suite of ten artist's proofs of wood engravings, each signed by Chamberlain, as well as an original woodblock by Chamberlain..... More
A nineteenth-century French solid gold enamel binding containing five bone leaves. First appearing around 1820, the carnets de bal were used to record the order of an evening's dances, as well as the name of the partner for a particular dance. This opulent example is decorated with a leaf border;..... More
NY: Hurst & Company, (c. 1880). 192pp. Twenty-five engravings—one frontispiece and each of the remaining twenty-four introducing a chapter—depicting significant scenes from the Bible. Among them appear Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, Pharaoh being swallowed up in the Red Sea, and Peter's denial of Christ. The volume..... More
Evanston: Schori Press, (1966). 60pp. One of 196 copies. The first miniature book of carols, containing the words to twelve of the most popular carols. Very fine in gilt-decorated red morocco with a color-printed label showing the Holy Family on the front cover. A.e.g. (2 3/8 by 2; 60x51mm). (Bradbury..... More
Providence: Livermore & Knight, 1914. 74pp. Printed in red and black. A handy compendium of cocktail recipies for the aspiring mixologist. Bound in green and red paper with gilt titling. Faintest rubbing to corners, else fine. All edges red. (2 1/16 by 1 3/4; 52x45mm). More
(England: c. 1902). (6)pp. A brass photograph album in the form of a locket, containing six pictures: King Edward VII and Alexandra of Denmark, crowned in 1902, the Prince and Princess who became George V and Queen Mary, and a child who is possibly the future Edward VIII. The final..... More
N.p. n.d. (4) ff. A photo-reduced reproduction, with news of the day on the cover and horse race information inside. Fine. (1 5/8 by 1 1/16; 41x27mm.). More
Franklin, NH: Hillside Press, 1963. 28pp. One of 325 copies. Dee was an astrologer, book collector, and mathematician, and a friend of Elizabeth I. Fine in cloth-backed decorated boards. (2 5/16 by 1 15/16; 58x47mm). More
Franklin, NH: Hillside Press, 1963. 28pp. One of 325 copies. Dee was an astrologer, book collector, and mathematician, and a friend of Elizabeth I. Fine in cloth-backed decorated boards. (2 5/16 by 1 15/16; 58x47mm). More
Collingswood, NJ: Washburn, William Lewis, 1931. One of 61 copies. Signed and inscribed by Washburn on the front free endpaper. A miniature ABC with letter on each page printed in red, with a girl's name beneath, followed by numbers and an abbreviated story of the little red hen. Bound in..... More
Philadelphia: Conrad Zentler, 1811. (vi), 106pp. Engraved frontispiece, plus nine further engravings, each depicting biblical scenes, such as the ascension of Elijah and the birth of Christ. A famous Thumb Bible; according to Bradbury, the first foreign religious miniature book printed in America. Originally bound in red leather, this copy..... More
Madrid: (c. 1860). 122pp., + six plates. The Catholic mass is here reduced to its essential points, understandable to children. The plates illustrate familiar scenes, such as the Ascension, the Crucifixion, and the woman at the well. In red morocco wallet--style binding decorated with gilt, including a splendid image of..... More
Franklin, NH: Hillside Press, 1968. xi, 42pp. One of 250 copies. Illustrated throughout with woodcuts replicated from seventeenth-century originals. Very fine in gilt-stamped black morocco. (2 5/16 by 2; 58x51mm). More
Worcester: St. Onge, Achille J., 1953. 77pp. One of 2,000 copies. Printed at the Chiswick Press in red and black type. With a black & white frontispiece portrait of the Queen. Bound by Sangorski & Sutcliffe in full red morocco, with gilt stamping to covers including double-rule borders. Paste-downs and..... More
Worcester, Massachusetts: St. Onge, Achille J., 1953. 77pp. From an edition of 2,000 copies, this is one of forty-six bound in 1960 with a variant frontispiece portrait of Elizabeth II in profile. Printed at the Chiswick Press in red and black type. Bound by Sangorski & Sutcliffe in full red..... More
(N.p. c. 1922). Set of eight cards, printed in red, along with a rules sheet. The cards form a drinking game; all are dealt to a group of eight, and each player must follow the pictorial instruction on the card placed before them. Five cards show a single cocktail, indicating..... More
Paris: Marcilly, (c. 1830). 127pp. A beautiful little book of hours for young people, with engraved title and five plates, the most charming showing David dancing and playing his harp, as he leads the procession of the Ark. Contains the Order of the Mass and various services in French, and..... More
Kadan, Czech Republic: Jana Pribikova, 2015. (38)pp. One of six copies. Signed by Pribikova at the colophon. A concise history of Dutch windmills, with information on their locations, energy production, and various types. Delightfully bound in green morocco with red, yellow, and purple leather strips inlaid on spine over exposed..... More
