![[MORMON]. [Caption title:] "From the Book of Mormon. The First Book of Nephi. His Reign and Ministry." In: The Reflector. New Series, Nos. 2-3. Pp. [9], [17]-19. Palmyra, N.Y., 2-13 January 1830.](https://www.christies.com/img/LotImages/2007/NYR/2007_NYR_01851_0282_000(021722).jpg?w=1)
Details
[MORMON]. [Caption title:] "From the Book of Mormon. The First Book of Nephi. His Reign and Ministry." In: The Reflector. New Series, Nos. 2-3. Pp. [9], [17]-19. Palmyra, N.Y., 2-13 January 1830.
4o (247 x 193 mm). (Some spotting and staining, p.4 with burn hole with loss of some text, offsetting from which only slightly affecting the Book of Mormon text.) Contemporary half calf, later typed title label on front cover (worn); half red morocco folding case).
THE FIRST PRINTING OF ANY PART OF THE BOOK OF MORMON, preceding its publication in book form. The volume includes the New Series, nos. 1-61 (without the unnumbered January 22 Extra). In 1829, after securing copyright for the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith arranged for the Palmyra printer Egbert Grandin to print the work. Oliver Cowdery transcribed the original manuscript and delivered what is known as the printer's manuscript to Grandin a few pages at a time. Typsetting and printing, made laborious because the original contained no punctuation, was accomplished piecemeal over the span of months. During this time Abner Cole (using the pseudonym Obediah Dogberry) was irregularly publishing an obscure one-man newspaper, The Reflector, which he printed on Sundays at Grandin's shop. He thus had access to the sheets of the Book of Mormon and decided to print unauthorized excerpts from the work. The first installments, from the First Book of Nephi, appeared here in the January 2 and 13 issues of The Reflector (a third and final installment appeared in an unnumbered extra dated January 22). The present series of issues of The Reflector is important not only for its printing of the Book of Mormon text, but for its extensive commentary on the book. Smith himself came to Palmyra to halt the publication, and after heated negotiations with Cole he succeeded. These rare unauthorized sections from the Book of Mormon, printed on the same press as the first edition which was published months later, are extremely scarce: according to American Book Prices Current, only the Littell-Streeter copy has appeared at auction in the past century. See Crawley pp.30-31. Streeter sale IV:2261. EXTREMELY RARE.
4
THE FIRST PRINTING OF ANY PART OF THE BOOK OF MORMON, preceding its publication in book form. The volume includes the New Series, nos. 1-61 (without the unnumbered January 22 Extra). In 1829, after securing copyright for the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith arranged for the Palmyra printer Egbert Grandin to print the work. Oliver Cowdery transcribed the original manuscript and delivered what is known as the printer's manuscript to Grandin a few pages at a time. Typsetting and printing, made laborious because the original contained no punctuation, was accomplished piecemeal over the span of months. During this time Abner Cole (using the pseudonym Obediah Dogberry) was irregularly publishing an obscure one-man newspaper, The Reflector, which he printed on Sundays at Grandin's shop. He thus had access to the sheets of the Book of Mormon and decided to print unauthorized excerpts from the work. The first installments, from the First Book of Nephi, appeared here in the January 2 and 13 issues of The Reflector (a third and final installment appeared in an unnumbered extra dated January 22). The present series of issues of The Reflector is important not only for its printing of the Book of Mormon text, but for its extensive commentary on the book. Smith himself came to Palmyra to halt the publication, and after heated negotiations with Cole he succeeded. These rare unauthorized sections from the Book of Mormon, printed on the same press as the first edition which was published months later, are extremely scarce: according to American Book Prices Current, only the Littell-Streeter copy has appeared at auction in the past century. See Crawley pp.30-31. Streeter sale IV:2261. EXTREMELY RARE.