1776 'GUNWAD BIBLE', THE FIRST TO BE PRINTED FROM AMERICAN TYPE

1776 'GUNWAD BIBLE', THE FIRST TO BE PRINTED FROM AMERICAN TYPE
An incredibly rare and historic Bible from colonial America, Christoph Suar's 'Gunwad Bible', or more formally known as 'Biblia, das ist: Die ganze Gottliche Heilige Schrift Alten und Neuen Testaments', printed in Germantown, PA, 1776. Thick quarto. Two volumes bound into one, the first volume is 992pp, the second volume is approx. 277pp., housed between brown calf skin-covered wooden boards with brass catches. This scarce American edition of Luther's German Bible was the first to be printed from American type, yet only 3000 copies were ever printed and fewer than 200 remain extant. German immigrant Christopher Saur published the first American Bible in a European language in 1743, and his son published a second edition of 2000 copies in 1763 - the first Bible to be printed on American paper. In 1776, Saur's son had just finished the printing of a third edition of 3000 copies – this edition, the first Bible printed from American type - when the Revolutionary War broke out. The British forces, upon their invasion of the city, destroyed practically every copy, using the paper as bedding for their horses and for making cartridges - thus bestowing this edition with the memorable moniker, 'The Gunwad Bible'. Endpapers bear a handwritten family record in German, largely untranslated. The interior pages bear some scattered foxing throughout, with some of the initial pages bearing some notable staining and some tears, though central and end pages remain in good condition. Both brass catches present. Contemporary calf boards bear some chipping and scratches, yet remain structurally secure and in quite good condition. Directly from the estate of Prof. R. WAYNE SNIDER (1928 - 2020), a founder of Grace Theological Seminary and a Professor of History for over fifty years at Grace College in Indiana.