We completed the first in a planned series of titles for University of Victoria Libraries Special Collections. The Seghers Collection: Old Books for a New World is an exploration of the books that belonged to Charles John Seghers (1839–1886), the second Roman Catholic bishop of Victoria. Seghers was a bibliophile who always carried books with him when he travelled, and he acquired a remarkable collection of ancient books in nine European languages. As Seghers told a friend, “a bishop without books is a soldier without arms.”

The book, written by Dr. Hélène Cazes, features 83 colour images plus dozens of typographic devices, ornaments and fleurons, illuminated letters and printers’ marks. The two-colour letterpress cover was printed on a 1931 Vandercook proof press by Don Allen at Winfield Printing in Victoria, and the insides were printed by UVic Printing Services, where the book was bound. The cover was printed on heavyweight Sundance Felt Cover (100% recycled) and the insides on Mohawk #70 Via Smooth.

You can flip through the entire book online at Issuu or view a PDF at the UVic Library.