New York International Antiquarian Book Fair 2018

Bloem-Hofje, Benedikt Smidt, 1674 - Price Upon Request

A famous miniature book which held the record for the smallest printed book in the world until the year 1897. The little book is in Dutch and titled Bloem-Hofje, which can be translated as ‘Little Flower Garden’, it contains an anthology of Christian phrases by C. van Lange.The binding measures 1,3 x 0,9 x  0,5 cm. (0,51 x 0,35 x 0,20 in.) Despite its size the work has a complete typesetting, the text is printed on double spreads on one side of the paper only and then stuck together to give the impression of normal leaves. Benedikt Smidt who printed/published the work in 1674 had just moved to Amsterdam in 1673 and probably produced it as a showpiece to demonstrate his technical abilities. He succeeded in doing so and produced an impressive masterpiece which held the record for the smallest printed book for over 200 years. The price for this collector’s item is $28,500.

Boekhandel en Antiquariaat De Roo
Zwijndrecht, Netherlands
+31 78 612 4081
info@derooboeken.nl
https://www.derooboeken.nl/