A second edition of the Eliot Bible, published in 1685, was on display for one evening at the Natick Historical Society on March 15, 2019.

The event was part of a talk on the Power of Art by U.K. artists Neville and Joan Gabie who are sponsored by the National Trust to create art in response to rare books.

Historical Society Director Nickie Lefebvre introduces Joan and Neville who display a picture of a 1663 Bible from the Blickling Estate in Norfolk, England.

Neville describes how most of the first edition Eliot Bibles, published in 1663 to help convert Native people to Christianity, were destroyed in the King Philip War. Only 39 of 1,000 published are known to exist today. Click here to see a video of a short comment by Neville.

Audience members look at the Bible on disply and examine the Native language translation of the Scripture that were done by Native people under Eliot’s supervision.

Museum Volunteer Jan Pearson comments on the value of the Bible for maintaining the Native language which was no longer spoken after the late 19th century.