The English edition of the Bible from the XVII century called the Wicked Bible, or Adulterous Bible or Sinners’ Bible, because of rough typographical error will soon be offered at auction. Unusually edition Holy Scriptures, in which the reader is encouraged to commit adultery is estimated at 14,000 to 21,000 euros. In 1631, during the printing due to typographical error, the ten commandment the word not in the sentence “Thou shalt not commit adultery” was omitted, thus changing the sentence into “Thou shalt commit adultery”.
“Sinners Bible” is published by Robert Barker, a royal printer in London. The error was not noticed immediately, but one year later, it costed Barker’s career.
Fined with 300 pounds, which was then astronomical sum, and subtracting a license to work, Barker was deeply in debt and ended up in prison where he died.
Over the next centuries, almost all of the 1,000 printed copies with the aforementioned mistake were destroyed. Only 10 copies of this Bible were rescued from the pyre, of which one will be offered on November 11th by auction house Bonhams in London.
Two copies of this “shameful” book are on display in the library of the University of Cambridge and one in the New York Public Library.