L is a Library Shelf Mark.

L is a bit of a Library Shelf Mark for a Bible one part of  L.15.f.1 it meant 'Large'  book, 15 is a group of books, f a sub-group and 1 a specific book, making  L.15.f.1.

You can see it is a Large Book in the photograph of Ian holding it

The Bible is the Doway Bible one of many that size, held in the British Library at St Pancras, London.
In the British Library Catalogue there are 4 Volumes of Bibles, all different Catalogue numbers, this group of Large Bibles are stored together by size and include Concordance,Illustrated,Old Testement and just plane Holy Bible, from countries through out the World.

When the current large Flooding problem happened  in Egham, Windsor and Maidenhead I met the Connection magazine Community Contact Page Organiser, Rob one evening while having a meal in the WineCircle Restaurant. He asked me to write a page about what I did at work in the British Library and describe the Large Bibles, I had mentioned, including a few photos

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In the Large Bibles the Illustrations when used, are very well engraved or etched or drawn and then printed and quite often,  are very helpful in explaining a passage, which a Reader may refer to.

One Illustration, I noticed one day, was 3 men with ropes hanging round their necks asking a Pharo to release their friend from Jail as he was a Prisoner of War and they, by wearing ropes were suggesting they were rich men and able to buy him out of Jail. The reply was, there is no point in doing that as we are about to go to war again and  your friend would die in the coming war anyway.

Another Illustration depicted a Large man holding a Rod  after being kicked by a smaller man on his shin, so they called the hill upon which he was kicked, Babel

How do we get the large Books to the Researchers in the Reading Rooms ?

 We use Barrows as they are too large or fragile to go up in the Mechanical Handling system's plastic boxes.

As the Flooding recedes and Easter is approaching we turn our minds to Adam and Eve and Easter Egg gifts for each other. See following Online Image on your computer:-

http://imagesonline.bl.uk/assets/thumbnails/88/3/6bb8c393fadefeec619c15c84e1eb663.jpg

The Large Books and Bibles will be here in St Pancras London, for ever to refer to, but where did they come from and who Published them ?

Most of those details are explained on the on line catalogue @ bl.uk .

The   KITTO Pictorial Sunday Book Scripture Atlas 'Geography of the Holy Land' Shelfmark L.16.d 4  however was Printed in London and New York and edited by Dr John Kitto F.S.A price 1 shilling or 20 cents. The Illustrations mentioned above are from 'Kitto'.

Ian was born in Helensburgh, Dumbartonshire, Scotland and lives in Virginia Water for relaxation he enjoys Hillwalking,  Golf and Swimming below Ian and his late wife Jackie  recently lost to Cancer , just North of Glasgow a few years ago Walking  with the Glasgow Ramblers.

I looked the word Magazine up in one of the Concordance,  and  'Magda' was closest with Passage  Reference to Mathew 15.6  "arriving ashore in  a Ship " a bit like the Large Bibles arriving in the Reading Rooms on a Barrow.

No sign of a Magazine in the Bible though because  Magazines  started as Pulp Fiction in America transferring News between new settlers from Europe and grew into the industry we have today that supports 'CONNECTION' our Community magazine.

If you have a question about a word, or story from the Bible which you would like to research, Ian would bring it up to the Rare Books Reading Room for you.