17th-century English gold-tooled black morocco binding, produced for St John's College (C.1.28-29)
This edition of Basilika, The workes of King Charles the martyr (London, 1662), was produced soon after the Restoration, and the copy at St John's bears a black morocco binding decorated with gold-tooling in a "rectangular" design, but also has the College's name in a central cartouche on the cover. The "rectangular" style was reputedly introduced to England by Samuel Mearne, binder and stationer to Charles II, and the tools used here look similar to those used by Mearne on a later binding in the Library's collection. There is a donation inscription to the College from John Goodrick (fl. 1655-1667) on the fly-leaves.