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The Bible Museum
Our Rare & Antique Bible Showroom offers the world’s largest for-sale collection of ancient Bibles. Located in the Grand Lobby of one of Phoenix (Goodyear) Arizona’s most beautiful hotels; the outer showroom, open 24-hours, features many antique Bibles in display cabinets. The adjacent inner room houses our amazing Book Vault, where in-person purchases and tours are available by appointment only during regular business hours. Since 1987 we have been not just the largest, but in fact, the world’s only full-time professional dealers of rare and antique Bibles with a public showroom.
Acquiring an ancient original antique Bible printed in the 1500’s, 1600’s, or 1700’s, can be an enormously rewarding experience for any Christian who appreciates God’s Word and values having an authentic and rare piece of Christian history. In addition to our inventory of complete restored and beautifully bound original ancient Bibles, we also offer the opportunity to obtain a favorite passage of scripture in the form of an ancient Bible leaf (Bible page) suitable for framing and displaying in your home. Also, for those simply wanting an affordable reference or study copy of the ancient English translations of the Word, we publish a full line of high quality facsimile reproductions. Whichever of these three options you choose, an ancient printing of God’s Word in your home stands as a “silent witness” to any visitor, demonstrating your priorities, and confirming that yours is a Christian home that honors our Christian heritage.
Collecting and displaying what we love in our homes is a deeply rooted human trait. Many people proudly display their collections of sports memorabilia, high end audio-video equipment, music, coins, stamps, wine, artwork, books, antiques, and fine furnishings. The more affluent even collect exotic and classic automobiles. The unspoken message in all cases is: “this is what I am about… this is what is important to me… this is what I love”. What do the contents of your home silently communicate to your visitors (and your own family) regarding your focus, interests, and priorities? Many of our customers have told us their antique Bibles or Bible leaves are the first things they show their visitors, and they are often a great conversation piece for sharing their faith. We discuss this further in our article on Family Bibles and their curious disappearance from most American homes since the 1980’s.
A Bible can be antique, but not rare. A Bible can be rare, but not antique. A Bible can be both antique and rare, but not valuable. However, what we offer are Bibles that check all three boxes: Bibles that are antique and rare and valuable.
How can you determine whether a Bible is antique or rare or valuable? First and foremost, you should only purchase from a reputable dealer. We here at The Bible Museum have been the world’s largest dealers of rare and antique Bibles since 1987, (online at GREATSITE.COM since 1996), and there are no other full-time professional rare book dealers with a legitimate storefront location who focus exclusively on ancient Biblical printings, and move a significant volume of such material, making our organization a “near monopoly” in this niche market for over 35 years. We also strive to educate our customers to be independently discerning in their evaluations of ancient Bibles available for purchase anywhere. The “bargain priced” antique Bible is often not investment grade, and not the bargain it may appear to be. A basic understanding of the nature of antique Bibles and rare Bibles can provide a sense of empowerment for the buyer, which transcends being dependent upon trusting any dealer.
Our helpful article on Antique, Rare, & Valuable Bibles, explains why Bibles less than 200 years old are rarely of any historic or collector value. Even more detail can be found on our Antique Bible Buyer’s Guide, which defines many terms used in the world of rare and antique Bibles, and discusses the key factors of antiquarian Bible evaluation including: rarity, historical significance, market demand, first edition status, age, condition, collation. binding, and provenance. However, prerequisite to all that is having a good basic understanding of the history and timeline of English Bible translation, and our brief illustrated article on English Bible History is the most referenced work on that subject, having been read online by well over one million people over the past 25 years. If you are more of a visual learner, we suggest watching our popular video, “The Forbidden Book”, which you can view freely on our website.
When people visit our showroom, we often hear “Do you have an original first edition of the 1611 King James Bible”? (We usually do have one). It is no surprise that the beloved 1611 King James Version Bible, also known as the KJV Bible, or simply The Authorized Version, being the most printed book in history, is the star of the show. Many are however, surprised to learn that the 1611 King James Bible was not even among the first ten English translations of the Bible. John Wycliffe translated the Bible into English in the late 1300’s, and William Tyndale (assisted by Myles Coverdale and John “Thomas Matthew” Rogers) printed English scriptures throughout the early to mid 1500’s. Indeed, the 1611 KJV Bible was not even the first “Authorized” English Bible of the Church of England. That was King Henry VIII’s “Great Bible” of 1539, followed by Queen Elizabeth’s “Bishops Bible” of 1568. The King James Bible came much later, as the third Bible to be officially authorized by the Anglican Church, in 1611.
Discovering that the King James Bible is actually not a Protestant Bible, but rather, it is an Anglican Bible, is a shock for many. The much loved English Bible of the Protestant Reformation was in fact, the older 1560 Geneva Bible which continued to enjoy far more popularity than the KJV until well into the 1600’s. But the greatest shock of all for those who treasure the 1611 King James Bible as their favorite, is learning that the 1611 KJV Bible was revised in 1615, and again in 1629, and again in 1638, and again in 1762 & 1769. Nearly all King James Version Bibles printed in the past 250 years (since the late 1700’s) are the fifth generation revised version of the 1760’s, the Cambridge / Oxford Revisions, which contain 40,000 changes, and over 400 wording changes, … quite different than the 1611 First Edition King James Bible. Yet modern printings of the King James Bible admit this unpopular truth nowhere, and misleadingly even say “1611” in the front. Comparing your own King James Version Bible to one of our photographic facsimile reproductions of the first edition 1611 KJV Bible will quickly show the extreme difference.
Finally, there was one last change made to the King James Version Bible in 1885: the removal of 14 Books of The Bible! Prior to 1885, all English Bibles, including all King James Bibles, had 80 Books. Since 1885, we only find 66 Books in our Bibles. The missing Books, which were called the Deuterocanonical or Apocryphal Books were so important to King James that he threatened anyone who printed his Bible without these books, with a year in jail and heavy fines. This is all shocking to people who do not know the full story of the King James Bible, and the mystery and intrigue does not end there. The actual printing of the 1611 King James Bible was an extremely complex and confusing endeavor, involving two dozen printers, resulting in thousands of copies that were actually printed in 1611 being given bewildering title pages dated 1613, 1617, 1634, and 1639. If you would like to know the full story, just read our article on The 1611 King James Bible.
We know… it can be overwhelming at first. But learning about the history of the Bible is a fascinating journey. Our website, and particularly the links provided above, provide you with a step-by-step guide to quickly gaining a fundamental understanding of English Bible history. You can then read all about each Bible and decide which antique Bibles (originals or reproductions) you would like to have in your home. If you have any questions along the way, feel free to contact us, and be sure to sign up for our Email Newsletter.