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Religious Books

Humanity’s search for the divine is as old as man. Early hunter-gatherer tribes sought meaningful ways to interact with the environment, thereby ensuring their survival by appeasing whatever spirits bestowed favorable fortunes upon them. The written record of humankind’s preoccupation with these controlling forces is found in religious texts, which are valuable both for their contents and their worth on the market.

Throughout time, sacred texts have been hidden, stolen, smuggled, and destroyed. These are factors which add to their rarity and value. The earliest-known religious texts are the inscriptions written on the walls of the Egyptian pyramids known as the Pyramid Texts, which date to around 3,000 B.C. Fragments of the Babylonian "Epic of Gilgamesh" and the Sumerian tablets discovered at the archaeological site of Ugarit are important cultural discoveries revealing the religious beliefs of ancient societies. The Dead Sea scrolls, a collection of documents written on papyrus and animal skins containing ancient biblical texts, were discovered in caves in the ‘40s and ‘50s.

Religious books bring lots of excitement at auction based upon their rarity, age, and scholarly or historical applications. The price of rare religious books is steadily climbing, often bringing millions at auction houses.


Quick Facts

  • A rare copy of Rhode Island settlement founder Roger William’s "The Bloody Tenet of Persecution" sold for $175,000 at a 2015 Sotheby's auction. The book was so offensive to Christian views upon publication in 1644 that British Parliament ordered all copies burned
  • The "Gospels of Queen Theutberga of Lorraine," a 9th-century gospel believed to be missing for 20 years, was sold by Christie’s to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for $2,850,844 in 2014
  • "Hebrew Bible: Pentateuch with Haftarot and the Five Scrolls, England: 15 Tammuz 4949=2 July 1189" sold for $3,610,000 at a 2015 Sotheby’s auction. This rare Hebrew book dates to before the expulsion of the Jewish people from the British Isles

Recommended Items at Auction

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Miniature 1847 Methodist Hymns Leather Bound Pocket Size Religious Music Book
May 19, 6:00 PM EDT
Miniature 1847 Methodist Hymns Leather Bound Pocket Size Religious Music Book
by Atlee Raber Auctioneer
Est: $0- $0
$153 Bids
Bible [English]. Printed leaves from [The Holy Bible, Conteyning the Old Testament, 1611 or 1613]
May 20, 10:00 AM BST
Bible [English]. Printed leaves from [The Holy Bible, Conteyning the Old Testament, 1611 or 1613]
by Dominic Winter Auctions
Est: £200- £400
£2203 Bids
Holy Bible in Sanskrit, Calcutta Imprint
May 24, 2:00 PM EDT
Holy Bible in Sanskrit, Calcutta Imprint
by Addison & Sarova Auctioneers
Est: $40- $400
$452 Bids
[WEE BOOK]. “World’s Smallest Bible” Shadowbox Display from...
May 22, 10:00 AM CDT
[WEE BOOK]. “World’s Smallest Bible” Shadowbox Display from...
by Potter & Potter Auctions Inc.
Est: $300- $600
$1502 Bids
Female Author, Quaker, Martha Simmonds
May 24, 2:00 PM EDT
Female Author, Quaker, Martha Simmonds
by Addison & Sarova Auctioneers
Est: $40- $400
$402 Bids
Konvolut -
Jun 04, 10:00 AM CEST
Konvolut -
by Zisska & Lacher
Est: €330- €500
€3302 Bids
Gutenberg Bible Leaf 'II Chronicles 7, 8, 9'
May 20, 10:00 AM CDT
Gutenberg Bible Leaf 'II Chronicles 7, 8, 9'
by Leonard Auction
Est: $50,000- $70,000
$34,0002 Bids
[Russian prayerbooks]. Sobornik (...).
May 21, 6:30 PM CEST
[Russian prayerbooks]. Sobornik (...).
by Bubb > Kuyper: Auctioneers of Books, Fine Arts & Manuscripts
Est: €200- €300
€2001 Bid
Mexico Imprint, 1774, Manual De Exercicios
May 24, 2:00 PM EDT
Mexico Imprint, 1774, Manual De Exercicios
by Addison & Sarova Auctioneers
Est: $50- $500
$501 Bid
[Biblia latina]. Luca, F. Sacrorum Bibliorum vulgatae editionis concordantiae. Ed. H. Phalesius.
May 21, 9:30 AM CEST
[Biblia latina]. Luca, F. Sacrorum Bibliorum vulgatae editionis concordantiae. Ed. H. Phalesius.
by Bubb > Kuyper: Auctioneers of Books, Fine Arts & Manuscripts
Est: €80- €100
€801 Bid
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Dictionary of the Bible, Five Vol. Set
May 20, 10:00 AM EDT
Dictionary of the Bible, Five Vol. Set
by Barry S. Slosberg Inc
Est: $60- $120
$201 Bid
Jones [Owen, illuminator]. The Book of Common Prayer, London: John Murray, 1845
May 20, 10:00 AM BST
Jones [Owen, illuminator]. The Book of Common Prayer, London: John Murray, 1845
by Dominic Winter Auctions
Est: £200- £300
£2001 Bid
KORAN
May 20, 2:00 PM CEST
KORAN
by Campo & Campo
Est: €300- €500
€2201 Bid
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Colt Bible Hidden Compartment Book
May 17, 9:00 AM CDT
Colt Bible Hidden Compartment Book
by Matthew Bullock Auctioneers
Est: $30- $300
$151 Bid
c1829 19th Century Holy Bible Christian Spiritual Religion Book
May 19, 6:00 PM EDT
c1829 19th Century Holy Bible Christian Spiritual Religion Book
by Atlee Raber Auctioneer
Est: $0- $0
$51 Bid
Alter Meister | Koberger, Anton | 1440 Nürnberg - 1513 Ebenda
May 24, 10:00 AM CEST
Alter Meister | Koberger, Anton | 1440 Nürnberg - 1513 Ebenda
by GAILER Kunstauktionshaus am Chiemsee
Est: €0- €0
€101 Bid
Biblia latina - (Biblia
Jun 04, 10:00 AM CEST
Biblia latina - (Biblia
by Zisska & Lacher
Est: €200- €300
€2001 Bid
Konvolut -
Jun 04, 10:00 AM CEST
Konvolut -
by Zisska & Lacher
Est: €700- €1,000
€7001 Bid
Konvolut -
Jun 04, 10:00 AM CEST
Konvolut -
by Zisska & Lacher
Est: €500- €700
€5001 Bid
800 Silver Bound 19C Austrian Judaic Prayer Book
May 28, 12:00 PM EDT
800 Silver Bound 19C Austrian Judaic Prayer Book
by Hill Auction Gallery
Est: $100- $1,000
$501 Bid
1849 Antique Miniature Prayer Book, Holy Water Bottle & Religious Relics Collection
May 19, 6:00 PM EDT
1849 Antique Miniature Prayer Book, Holy Water Bottle & Religious Relics Collection
by Atlee Raber Auctioneer
Est: $0- $0
$51 Bid
Erasmus New Testament, 1548
May 24, 2:00 PM EDT
Erasmus New Testament, 1548
by Addison & Sarova Auctioneers
Est: $400- $4,000
$4001 Bid

Sellers Who Sell Religious Books


Soler y Llach

Soler y Llach

Addison & Sarova Auctioneers

Addison & Sarova Auctioneers

Zisska & Lacher

Zisska & Lacher