Imagines et figurae Bibliorum - Images et figures de la Bible - Beelden ende figuren wt den Bybel

101 copper-engraved prints including one unnumbered title. One oblong volume, bound in calf, spine with raised bands, gilt lettered title page, red edges. Vintage mounting, each plate has been cut and pasted on a sheet.  

A mystical theologian of the late 16th century, Hendrik Jansen van Barrefelt preached a doctrine that met with some success in the United Provinces. He believed that ceremonies and sacraments had a purely symbolic meaning. Following a vision in 1573, the preacher adopted the name "Hiël" and broke with his spiritual master, Hendrik Niclaes. Barrefelt had many followers, among them the famous Christopher Plantin. Deeply devoted to the theologian, the publisher wrote to him every week and also printed his works in secret, including Imagines et Figurae Bibliorum from the Bible. Hendrik Jansen van Barrefelt had a special relationship with images; he believed that contemplating biblical scenes brought him closer to God. According to Jean-Marc Besse, the theologian thus recognized "the possibility for everyone, through direct meditation of the Bible, to receive enlightenment. It was for this purpose, and with the aim of disseminating the Hyleist ideas, that the Imagines et Figurae Bibliorum were produced.

Composed of 101 plates engraved by Pieter Van der Borcht, this series was published with false indications of place and publisher. This first edition, of great rarity, devotes about sixty plates to the events of the Old Testament. The iconographic identification of the different scenes is also facilitated by the indication, in the upper part of each composition, of the precise biblical reference. This is completed by the presence of a letter consisting of extracts from the Bible in Latin. Coming from an important line of engravers, Pieter Van der Borcht carried out a significant work since he signed all the plates of this work. These plates are a testimony to his inventiveness and to the way in which the Hiëlist movement interpreted the Holy Scriptures. Offering a complete panorama of the founding events of Christianity, Imagines et Figurae Bibliorum is an important work in the history of the book at the end of the 16th century. Its editorial destiny is, moreover, extremely complex since the plates underwent numerous variations and doctrinal adaptations during their multiple printings[3].

[1] François Raphelengien also participated in the edition of the work. 
[2] Jean-Marc Besse, Les grandeurs de la Terre : aspects du savoir géographique à la Renaissance, Paris, ENS, 2003, p.356. 
[3] Seven editions are referenced in Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Hollstein, Dutch and Flemish etchings, engravings, and woodcuts, Amsterdam, Menno Hertzberger, t. 3, 1950, p. 99.