Russia.- Orthodox Old Believer Service Book, manuscript in Church Slavonic, c.235pp. excluding blanks, 12 lines of text per page in black ink with musical notation above (words separated into syllabic motifs to match music), key to value of musical notes in red and black, one full-page illustration of St Luke in his scriptorium, 9 head-pieces and 16 decorative initials in red, blue, yellow and green gouache, some with gold, each section headed with one line of decorative interlocking script in red ink, headings, initials and articulation marks also in red, small printed label "Restauriert von Vera Creola 3006 Bern" to rear pastedown, first and last few leaves reinforced at gutter, few small wormholes at beginning and end, one within text of first c.20 leaves, the occasional marginal defect, some browning, soiling, some staining, generally light, original calf over wooden boards, blind-stamped in ornate panelled design, sympathetically rebacked preserving much of original backstrip, recornered and repairs to fore-edge, 2 brass claps ?leather renewed, 4 brass studs to lower cover, few small wormholes, some wear to covers, folio (each leaf 354 x 260mm.), [Tsarist Russia], [18th-early 19th century].

⁂ An usually richly decorated Orthodox service book, made by hand because the sect of the OId Believers were forbidden by the Tsarist government to use the printing presses. The paper has no watermarks, possibly suggesting manufacture in a remote territory or among the exiled Old Believers in Turkey.