Rare and early dos-á-dos embroidered miniature binding.

The New Testament of our Lord and Savior Iesus Christ. New translated out of Original Greeke. WITH: The whole book of Psalms

Two works in one volume, n.p., 330 (6) p.

Contemporary dos-á-dos embroidered binding, 12°.       H. 103 x W. 54 mm  /  4 x 2.1 inches.

Extremely rare and early dos-á-dos miniature binding, “back to back” worked in silver thread with pink and green rosettes on white satin.
Colours faded, and some loss of stitching, especially on the spines. All edges gilt. Comes in a folding box.

Owner’s name in old manuscript: “Catharine Turner 1776”. The first flyleaf is written in pencil: “Very fine fine specimen of embroidered binding by the Nuns of Little Gidding”. The “Nuns of Little Gidding” refers to a religious community founded in the 17th century in the village of Little Gidding in Cambridgeshire, England. The term “nuns” is a bit misleading; while they lived a very devotional life, they were not formally Roman Catholic nuns. This community was founded in 1626 by Mary Woodnoth Ferrar and her son Nicholas, housed forty-some members of the extended Ferrar, Collet, and Mapletoft families, and their retainers.
They devoted their lives to prayer, Bible study and memorization, contemplation, acts of charity, and the production of several unique Bible concordances or harmonies (as well as some Bible histories) of which fifteen are extant. Women were central to the spiritual life of the community.

They followed a strict daily rhythm of Common Prayer, Bible reading, and acts of service (such as caring for the sick and educating children).
They were visited by King Charles I in 1646, while he was on the run during the English Civil War.
The community faded after the death of Nicholas Ferrar in 1637, but their lifestyle later inspired Anglican religious communities.

The community’s spiritual legacy was revived in the 20th century by T.S. Eliot, in his poem “Little Gidding”, part of his Four Quartets (1942).
In this work, Eliot meditates on suffering, time, and divine presence. He presents Little Gidding as a sacred space where the divine meets the earthly, especially in times of destruction and renewal, as during World War II. Today, the village is a pilgrimage site for Christians, poets, and seekers of spiritual stillness.

Reference: Henley, Carmen Ortiz, The Women of Little Gidding, Univ. of Arizona, 2012.