John Pearson was a Church of England clergyman and from 1673 until his death in 1686 served as Bishop of Chester. In 1659 he published this, his most popular book, An Exposition of the Creed. It contains a series of sermons concerning the Apostles’ Creed Pearson gave while preaching at St Clement Eastcheap in London. The book went through several editions, the present copy is of the eleventh, published in 1723.

Due to its extravagant binding, this book was one of those selected by the Royal Librarian, Richard Rivington Holmes, in 1893 as a fine example of bookbinding in the Royal Library at Windsor Castle.

Binding information

Bound in red morocco, with extensive gold tooling built up of stems, leaves, flowers, drawer handle tools, circles, pointille dots, stars and volutes. Central panel with double dotted roll tool on each side of a fillet line. Edges of boards with roll tool of flowers in roundels and palmettes, as are turn-ins. Spine divided into six compartments, with lettering to second, others tooled with flowers, volutes and pointille dots.