Church of England. Book of Common Prayer and Administration of the Holy Communion. Together with the Psalter or Psalms of David. Oxford University Press. Henry Frowde. [London]. [1898].

Diamond 128mo. All edges gilt over red. 672 printed pages. Fine India paper. Printed by Horace Hart, Oxford University Press. Rounded corners. Inner gilt scrolling dentelles. All edges gilt over red. Original black endpapers. Contemporary ink inscription on verso of front free endpaper, dated December 31st, 1898. 48 x 56mm. Original black morocco. A gilt cross on the upper cover. Welsh, 1857.

"Diamond" was the traditional name used by British typefounders for one of the smallest commercially available type sizes. It typically measured just 4.5 point (or sometimes 4point), which is significantly smaller than the 10-12 point font commonly used in modern books and documents. A very small, portable devotional prayer book in very good condition. These miniature books were immensely popular in the late Victorian and Edwardian eras (late 19th and early 20th centuries) for people with acute eyesight and bright gas mantles. They were considered a triumph of printing technology and were often bound in fine leather with gilt edges and presented as gifts, sometimes featuring personalized silver plaques or inscriptions dated around the turn of the century. The practicality of printing hundreds of pages of tiny text in a book less than half an inch thick relied heavily on the use of ultra-thin, yet opaque, "India paper" (a precursor to modern Bible paper). This allowed a 500+ page book to remain incredibly slim and lightweight.