Page 31 - Swann Galleries - Printed & Manuscript Americana - Sale 2310 - April 16, 2013

54
56
THE FIRST BOOK OF MUSIC PRINTED FROM TYPE IN AMERICA
55 ● (BIBLE IN ENGLISH.) The Psalms of David, with the Ten Command-
ments, Creed, Lord’s Prayer, &c. in Metre . . . for the Use of the Reformed
Protestant Dutch Church of the City of New-York. 8vo, contemporary calf, worn,
boards detached; free endpapers detached and defaced, title page worn with slight loss to
imprint, lacking most of leaf A1, some headlines cropped, minor page wear; later owner’s
inscription on front free endpaper, library bookplate and release stamp on front pastedown.
New York: James Parker, 1767 [600/900]
“This is the first book of music printed from type in America. The type for the music notes was
obtained from Amsterdam”—Evans 10561. As explained in the preface, the translation from
the Dutch was undertaken “by Reason of the Declension of the Dutch Language” in New
York, less than a hundred years after the Dutch relinquished New Amsterdam. The Psalms
were translated from the Dutch by John Livingston, and then edited into verse by Francis
Hopkinson, who later signed the Declaration of Independence. The Heidelberg Catechism
appears as an appendix with a separate title page and pagination, as issued. Church 1067;
Evans 10561; Sabin 66448.
56 ● (BIBLE IN ENGLISH.) A New Version of
the Psalms of David. 12mo, contemporary calf,
minor wear; moderate foxing; Pierce family inscrip-
tions on endpapers, including an appealing naive
painting on the front free endpaper dated 1791.
Evans 22351. Boston, 1790 [150/250]
57 (BLIND.) New York Institution for the
Blind. Primary Reader for the Blind. 56 leaves of
embossed text. Small folio, 1/2 sheep, moderate wear;
minor foxing; early ownership inscription on front
free endpaper. New York: Piercy & Houel, 1847
[400/600]
A scarce reader printed in raised type using the English
alphabet, before Braille became the common standard. Early
owner Charles William Scofield (1830-1909) of New
Canaan, CT was listed in the 1850 census as blind. In
1870, he was supporting a wife and two children as a basket
maker. One copy in WorldCat, and none known at auction.
54 ● (BASEBALL.) Attention! Baseball!
Two Big Games! Hickory F.C. vs.
Mount Kisco. Letterpress broadside, 203/4 x
151/4 inches; moderate wear, laid down on
linen, spot-mounted to board on top edge.
Mount Kisco, NY: Recorder Office,
30 July [1910] [200/300]
“The Hickory F.C. is one of the fastest teams in
Brooklyn, and should furnish the fans with a
clean, snappy article of baseball.”